Does this video show Joe Biden confused and not knowing where he was at the end of an event? No, that's not true: The edited excerpt from a video of the president-elect announcing members of his Science Team shows him pausing and looking around in silence as he leaves the stage. But raw footage of the event, which is crisper because it has not been heavily cropped, shows Biden was on stage with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, that the event was ending and he looked around at the question being shouted at him, appeared to ask what was said and chose not to answer, none of which is evident because the sound is turned off in the audio, removing context for his expression and actions.
The claim appeared as a post published by Josh Lekach on Twitter on January 17, 2021 (archived here) which opened:
"We are so screwed. He has no idea where or who he is sometimes."
This is what the post looked like on Twitter at the time of writing:
(Source: Twitter screenshot taken on Mon Jan 18 23:59:40 2021 UTC)
Lekach, who hosts a podcast and a show titled "Wrong Opinion," posted the tweet and then a follow-up when Twitter users pointed out the sound was cut off and Biden could not properly hear the questions shouted at him.
Many ppl who wear masks in their profile pictures are mad that the sound cuts out and the video is zoomed in.
-- 🌴 Josh Lekach 🌴 (@JoshLekach) January 17, 2021
That's the point, look at his face. His facial expressions say it all; he's lost and confused.
MASKIE ppl forgot how important it is to see people's faces. Social cues!
Lekach does not address the effect the zooming-in has on the video. The raw footage is crisper and the zoomed-in footage blurs Biden's eyes and face and other details.
Donald Trump Jr. also posted the video:
Yikes. If he was a Republican the 25th amendment talk would be trending and rightfully so. pic.twitter.com/ohKjOSdoJI
-- Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) January 17, 2021
NBC News posted the entire presentation of Biden introducing his Science Team on January 16, 2021, showing Harris on stage with him during the event.
Beginning at 41 minutes, 58 seconds the raw footage shows Biden wrapping up the press conference with a much wider angle than the excerpt posted on Twitter.
As Biden walks away from the podium and grabs his folder off the table, questions from the audience are shouted out at him. One was, "Is there any scenario where you would not be taking the oath outside on Wednesday?" and another was about the filibuster and the Stimulus plan.
Biden appears to listen to the questions but then smiles and doesn't answer them and walks off stage, which is a common ending to press conferences, where reporters often have more questions than the official will answer.
