Joe Biden calls another reporter a ‘lying dog face’ and brushes off ‘cognitive decline’ question

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Apparently irritated by the reporter’s questioning as he tried to leave the podium at a school in Wilmington, Delaware, Mr Biden snappily called him a “lying dog face” before answering a question on his cognitive health. It was during the run-up to the New Hampshire primary that Mr Biden called 21-year-old Madison Moore “a lying, dog-faced pony soldier” – an epithet that Mr Biden’s campaign said was a John Wayne reference, though its true provenance is somewhat unclear. While the exchange with Ms Moore was clearly amicable enough, Mr Biden has had sharp words for voters on the campaign trail before, on one occasion last year calling an 83-year-old man in Iowa a “damn liar”. The question that the reporter managed to get in as Mr Biden’s patience wore thin was on what’s become Donald Trump’s main theme of the campaign, namely that Mr Biden is suffering visible symptoms of cognitive decline and is almost at the point of senility.