"Not best but goodest?"... White House on Biden controversy: "He said good as"

ABC Broadcasting Releases Transcript of President Biden Interview
Use of Grammatically and Semantically Incorrect Words... White House Says "good as"
Refusal to Undergo "Cognitive Test"... "Tested Through Work"

With the U.S. presidential election approaching this November, President Joe Biden, who has faced pressure to withdraw from the race amid cognitive decline controversies, is now embroiled in a controversy over his use of an unclear word. On the 6th (local time), The New York Times (NYT) reported that "the White House scrambled to manage the situation due to a word President Biden used in a recent interview with ABC News."

U.S. President Joe Biden, who is facing calls to resign, is giving a speech on the South Lawn of the White House on July 4th, U.S. Independence Day.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

At the time, President Biden is presumed to have used the word 'goodest' to mean 'best' while responding with the sentiment "I performed at my best," which has intensified concerns about his cognitive abilities. First of all, the word is grammatically incorrect. President Biden appeared to use 'goodest' as the superlative form of 'good,' but the correct and common superlative is 'best.'

Although such grammatical rules are often not strictly followed in everyday speech, the expression 'goodest' is considered awkward. According to the online Collins Dictionary, 'goodest' is described as being used to mean "not necessarily 'the best' but rather 'not the best but okay.'" Setting aside the grammatical error, this means the word cannot effectively convey the intended meaning.

After ABC News released the transcript of the interview, the White House denied that President Biden used the word 'goodest' and raised concerns with the broadcaster. Additionally, Biden's campaign requested reporters from the NYT who mentioned 'goodest' in their articles to correct their reports. The phrase in the transcript was changed from 'goodest' to 'good as,' and American media outlets including the NYT revised their articles after confirming that ABC News had amended the transcript. However, the NYT suggested that the president's remark was so unclear that it was difficult to interpret accurately, implying that he might indeed have used the word 'goodest.'

President Biden has firmly refused calls for a cognitive test during the interview with ABC News. When asked whether he had undergone a cognitive test or seen a neurologist, he replied, "No. No one has told me I need to." When asked if he was willing to take a test, he responded, "I take cognitive tests every day (at work)." When the interviewer pressed further, he said, "Watch me. There is plenty of time left (until the election). More than 125 days left." When asked if that meant he would not take a test immediately, he evaded by saying, "Well, I already have."