Pelosi Says Those Aware of Biden's Decline Should Have Acted

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stated that those close to President Joe Biden during his 2024 reelection campaign should have acted on information regarding his mental acuity, while maintaining she was unaware of his decline until his debate performance in June 2024. Pelosi made the remarks during an interview at Politico's The California Agenda Sacramento Summit on Tuesday, August 11, 2026.

"I do think that those who did know should have acted upon that information. Whoever knew," Pelosi said. She added, "There was staff saying the family knew. The family said the staff." The comments represent some of her most detailed public reflections on the role she played in urging Biden not to seek another term.

Pelosi, who was no longer Speaker at the time, explained that she had limited in-person contact with Biden after Democrats lost the House majority in the 2022 midterm elections. "When I was Speaker, I saw the president all the time, but when I wasn't, then I saw him maybe three times that whole year and so I didn't know," she said. She recalled one of those instances was when Biden awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in May 2024, stating he was "perfectly fine that day."