Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report concluded that President Joe Biden should not be prosecuted for mishandling classified documents because he is an “elderly man with a poor memory.” A confident and competent Biden could have laughed off an outlying report, not even bothering to acknowledge its existence.

But the problem for Biden and his hopes of reelection is that Hur’s conclusions are not anomalous. The president has a well-established record of embarrassing and disturbing mental lapses.