Photo: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images
Former president Joe Biden thanked Americans for their “love and support” in an X post on Monday morning, a day after revealing that he has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
Cancer touches us all. Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places. Thank you for lifting us up with love and support. pic.twitter.com/oSS1vGIiwU
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) May 19, 2025
Biden’s office announced the news around 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 18, saying in a statement that the 82-year-old former president has stage-four prostate cancer, meaning it has spread to the bone.
Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, per spokesman. pic.twitter.com/ucm5g1dULL
— Ken Thomas (@KThomasDC) May 18, 2025
While Biden received many public messages of support from both Democrats and Republicans, accusations and conspiracy theories quickly began swirling. Questions about Biden’s health and mental capabilities were already back in the news last week due to Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s book, Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, which comes out on Tuesday. Vice-President J.D. Vance, First Son Donald Trump Jr., and others in MAGA world suggested that Biden and his team have been lying about the seriousness of his health issues.
Here’s a roundup of reactions to Biden’s cancer diagnosis from politicians and other public figures.
President Trump’s response to Biden’s cancer diagnosis
Though Trump relentlessly attacked Biden about his health and mental acuity before the latter dropped out of the 2024 race, his initial response to the news was surprisingly muted. He wrote on Truth Social:
Don Jr.’s response to Biden’s diagnosis
Initially, Don Jr. also had an appropriate, if not particularly heartfelt, response:
Agreed 100% pic.twitter.com/ry4aifQtVx
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) May 18, 2025
But within hours, Don Jr. positioned himself as a leading voice on Biden cancer conspiracy theories:
What I want to know is how did Dr. Jill Biden miss stage five metastatic cancer or is this yet another coverup??? pic.twitter.com/fSqtDmcX4p
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) May 18, 2025
To be clear, “stage five” is not a medical term. Also, the former First Lady has a doctoral degree in education, and as New York’s Chas Danner noted, “Experts say Biden’s late-stage diagnosis isn’t abnormal.”
Other Republicans’ reactions
Vice-President J.D. Vance floated conspiratorial claims similar to Don Jr.’s, but in a far more eloquent way. When asked about Biden’s diagnosis by reporters on Air Force Two, he initially wished Biden well.
“Of course, we wish the best for the former president’s health,” he said. “It sounds pretty serious, but hopefully he makes the right recovery.”
Vance then questioned whether now is the moment to discuss Biden’s health transparency, saying, “Whether the right time to have this conversation is now or at some time in the future we really do need to be honest about whether the former president was capable of doing the job.”
But apparently, the VP quickly decided that now is the appropriate time. He proceeded to criticize Biden’s performance as president and accuse the Biden team of hiding “what he was actually dealing with” while in office, which could be interpreted as a suggestion that Biden’s cancer was discovered well before Friday. Vance said:
You can separate the desire for him to have the right health outcome with a recognition that whether it was doctors or whether there were staffers around the former president, I don’t think he was able to do a good job for the American people. And that’s not politics, that’s not because I disagreed with him on policy, that’s because I don’t think that he was in good enough health. In some ways I blame him less than I blame the people around him.
And why didn’t the American people have a better sense of his health picture? Why didn’t the American people have more accurate information about what he was actually dealing with? This is serious stuff. This is the guy who carries around the nuclear footabll for the world’s largest nuclear arsenal. This is not child’s play. And we can pray for good health but also recognize that if you’re not in good enough health to do the job you shouldn’t be doing the job.
.@VP JD Vance on former President Biden’s cancer diagnosis: “We really do need to be honest about whether the former president was capable of doing the job…I don’t think that he was in good enough health. In some ways, I blame him less than I blame the people around him.” pic.twitter.com/0DYOd2mu4G
— CSPAN (@cspan) May 19, 2025
Ronny Jackson, the former White House physician turned congressman — who once gushed about Trump’s “excellent” health and withdrew his nomination to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2018 amid a fog of scandal — confidently asserted that Biden’s physician in the White House covered up his health condition:
Many other Trump allies, even Marjorie Taylor Greene, shared kind messages of support for President Biden:
Jeanette and I are united in prayer for the Biden Family during this difficult time.
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) May 18, 2025
Politics aside, let’s pray for the health of our nation’s former President. His case of metastatic prostate cancer appears to be still in the hormone-sensitive disease stage, which leaves open the possibility of effective treatment. 🙏🏾 https://t.co/wpF5dm4kQV
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) May 18, 2025
I’m sorry to see this news.
Cancer is truly awful. My Dad passed away in 2021 with cancer.
Prays for Joe Biden and his family. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/IS38b2mpmL
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) May 18, 2025
Praying for former President Joe Biden as he battles prostate cancer 🙏
— Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) May 18, 2025
I’m a practicing board-certified urologist and have taken care of prostate cancer patients for decades.
Here are my thoughts on President Biden’s diagnosis: pic.twitter.com/Z0f9AZYSuL
— Congressman Greg Murphy, M.D. (@RepGregMurphy) May 18, 2025
Meghan McCain — who was memorably comforted on-air by Biden after her father John McCain’s cancer diagnosis — wished the former president well and urged people to stop bringing politics into the discussion:
Cancer is the absolute worst. It is hell.
It is incredibly difficult for any family, anywhere that has to deal with it.
Wishing nothing but healing, prayers, light and strength to President Biden and his family.
I don’t believe times like these are appropriate for politics.
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) May 18, 2025
Democrats’ reactions
During a Sunday night interview on CNN, former Obama administration adviser David Axelrod said bipartisan conversations about a cover-up of Biden’s condition while in office should be shelved in light of his diagnosis.
“Those conversations are going to happen, but they should be more muted and set aside for now,” Axelrod said.
In the first day since Biden’s announcement, prominent Democrats have focused on simply wishing him well. Here’s what Barack Obama, Kamala Harris, and other Democratic leaders had to say:
Michelle and I are thinking of the entire Biden family. Nobody has done more to find breakthrough treatments for cancer in all its forms than Joe, and I am certain he will fight this challenge with his trademark resolve and grace. We pray for a fast and full recovery.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) May 18, 2025
My friend Joe Biden’s always been a fighter. Hillary and I are rooting for him and are keeping him, Jill, and the entire family in our thoughts.
— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) May 19, 2025
Doug and I are saddened to learn of President Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis. We are keeping him, Dr. Biden, and their entire family in our hearts and prayers during this time. Joe is a fighter — and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and… pic.twitter.com/gG5nB0GMPp
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) May 18, 2025
President Biden is a man of deep faith and extraordinary resilience. Chasten and I are keeping him, and the entire Biden family, in our prayers for strength and healing.
— Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) May 18, 2025
Joe has been a fighter his whole life. He will prevail. Sending Dr. Jill Biden and their family my absolute support.
— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) May 18, 2025
