On his very first day in office, during a virtual swearing in of new appointees, President Joe Biden declared, “If you’re ever working with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot. On the spot. No ifs, ands or buts.”

Less than a month later, hot shot White House deputy press secretary T.J. Ducklo was forced to resign after he threatened to “destroy” a female journalist for reporting on his dating life.

These days, eight minutes in front of the White House press corps is enough to strain the limits of Biden’s self control. On Monday, the 78-year-old bristled when Fox News reporter Peter Doocy shouted, “Do you think inflation will be a political liability?” A muttering Biden replied, “That’s a great asset: more inflation. What a stupid son of a bitch.” Biden later called Doocy to reassure him, “It’s nothing personal, pal.”

This is not the 78-year-old’s first outburst. Last week, Biden sneered, “What a stupid question,” when another Fox News correspondent asked about the mounting crisis in Ukraine. Last summer, in Geneva, Biden angrily snapped at a CNN reporter, “What the hell? What do you do all the time? When did I say I was confident?”

Concerned observers note that anger and aggression are common symptoms of dementia. Whatever the cause, the public is losing confidence in Biden.