'Despicable person': Sen Mike Lee faces backlash for spreading 'malicious lies' about Joe Biden having medical emergency

WASHINGTON, DC: Senator Mike Lee is facing significant backlash after amplifying a baseless claim about President Joe Biden experiencing a medical emergency on Air Force One, as reported by The Raw Story.

This controversy erupted after far-right activist Laura Loomer initially spread the misinformation, leading to a wave of intense criticism from journalists, commentators, and social media users.

Mike Lee spreads baseless claim about Joe Biden having medical emergency

On Friday evening, July 5, at 7:41 PM Eastern Time, Loomer wrote on X that Biden was having a "medical emergency on Air Force One" and that "press access has been removed."

This claim was quickly debunked by X's Community Notes function, which clarified that Biden "did NOT have a medical emergency on Air Force One following the Wisconsin rally and was perfectly fine throughout...and exited on his own after touching down in Delaware."

Despite the rapid fact-checking, Senator Lee penned on X at 8:09 PM Eastern Time, "If Biden is having a medical emergency at this moment — on board Air Force One or otherwise — that raises ... a lot of questions." His post remains on his official account, even as the misinformation was already disproven.

White House pool reporter Sophie Hills of the Christian Science Monitor provided additional clarity on the situation. Hills reported that Biden had stepped off Air Force One at 7:34 PM and was seen leaving with his motorcade before arriving at his Wilmington, Delaware home at 7:50 PM.

This timeline indicates that Biden was already at home about 20 minutes before Lee published his X post.

Monica Crowley, a former Trump administration official, also initially spread Loomer’s false claim but later backtracked, acknowledging the misinformation in a follow-up tweet. She wrote on X that "conflicting reports about Biden on AF1 but appears to be untrue."

Civil rights lawyer Leslie Proll described Lee’s post as "unconscionable," while Biden campaign advisor James Singer accused the senator of "s—posting lies." Joe Perticone, a contributor to the conservative website The Bulwark, criticized Lee for relying on unreliable sources for news.

PUerticone posted, "The most concerning thing about a US senator’s judgment and intelligence is that he believes he’d first be hearing something as important as this from… Monica Crowley and Laura Loomer."

Jennifer Schulze, a former WGN reporter, urged media outlets to cover the story of Lee spreading falsehoods about Biden. She wrote, "Take a moment to cover this story about a sitting US Senator spreading malicious lies about the President. I know it’s business as usual for republicans but it’s still newsworthy."

Mike Lee gets lambasted online for false claim about Joe Biden

The internet community was quick to react to Lee’s false claim about Biden, expressing their outrage and fury. One Facebook user said, "A despicable person." While another remarked, "Trying to do the same thing to Joe that they did to Hillary. Remember her, 'health concerns'."

A third user wrote, "Go back to Utah, stop trying to push your warped sense of conservatism on others, it's a cult..go away." Another user commented, "GRAND OLD PARTY OF LIARS. Only the BEST LIARS. World renowned for their LIES."

One user posted, "Another despicable disgusting loathsome reprehensible morally bankrupt repulsive member of the MAGA GOP." Another user mentioned, "It just further shows how desperate the right is becoming. If such a pathetic ploy is all they have to trot out it's clear they have nothing of any relevance whatsoever."

A seventh user stated, "Typical of this awful thug party!" Lastly, a user said, "Rumors are carried by haters, spread by fools, and accepted by idiots. Case in point…"

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.