George Santos wants to force Joe Biden to take a mental competency test

Out Rep. George Santos (R-NY) has introduced a bill requiring President Joe Biden to undergo a mental competency exam each year that he’s in office.

The “Executive Mental Competency Protection Act of 2023” – which currently has zero cosponsors – would test general intellect, reading and comprehension, attention and concentration, processing speed, learning and memory, reasoning, executive functions, visuospatial skills, motor speed and dexterity, mood and personality, and memory retention. If passed, the president would have to take the test on January 1 of each year or else the White House would lose funding for official travel.

Related:

George Santos allegedly stole $3000 from a veteran’s dying dog

The veteran said it was “degrading” when he was forced to panhandle to pay for the dog’s euthanasia after Santos stole the surgery money.

“Regardless of political affiliation, this should be a common sense and bipartisan agreement that when a man or a woman becomes president, they submit to an annual cognitive evaluation,” Santos said in a statement. “Physical examination results are publicly released throughout their time in office, and a thorough cognitive assessment should also be included, and failure to comply will result in no federal funds being obligated or expended for official travel.”

While he claims the bill has nothing to do with partisanship, it appears to be a dig at Biden based on the rightwing conspiracy theory that Biden has been secretly senile since he started his presidential campaign in 2019. He is not.

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Earlier this year, former Trump administration official and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) called for “mental competency tests” for politicians over the age of 75. Biden is 80.

Santos’s focus on politicians meeting requirements for holding office may be seen as ironic considering how his own lies about his qualifications inspired a bill. In January, out Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) introduced the SANTOS act requiring House and Senate candidates to disclose information about their education, military service, and employment history. It would punish those who lie about their background with a $100,000 fine and/or a one-year prison sentence.

Santos lied about much of his background in order to win his House race last year. He claimed to have attended Baruch College and New York University and to have worked for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, none of which was true. He has made unsubstantiated statements about his heritage, his mother dying due to the 9/11 attacks, having four employees who were killed in the Pulse shooting, and his past as a star volleyball player.

He has also been accused of stealing items like clothes, at least one checkbook, phones, and cash, as well as running more complicated scams like ATM skimming, writing bad checks to Amish dog breeders, and charity fraud.

“You can not have a fraudulent candidate have access to information and briefings about national security,” Torres said. “He cannot be a United States Congressperson.”

This is the second bill that Santos has introduced in Congress. The other bill was about taxes.