Jill Biden, the former First Lady of the United States, is speaking openly about the moment during the debate between her husband Joe Biden and Donald Trump in June 2024 - the debate that changed the course of the US election and the course of world politics. "I was terrified, because I had never seen Joe like that before, and not since. Never," Jill Biden said.

A quote within a quote: "I didn't know what was happening. As I was watching, I thought, 'Oh my God, he's having a stroke.' That terrified me to death." For the family, that was the moment they knew the campaign would not continue. For the Democratic party - that was the week officials started pressing him to step down.

What happened next is history. A poor debate performance, followed by missteps at the NATO summit and visible weakness after recovering from COVID, led to Biden withdrawing from the race. Kamala Harris took up the nomination - and then lost to Trump in November 2024. The outcome: a second Trump term, a dangerous turn in US foreign policy, and a new deep, real turn for European security.

The question still hanging: did Biden actually have a stroke on the night of the debate? It was never confirmed. Jill says "I thought", not "it was proven". Doctors released nothing. But a statement from the wife of the man who was president of the most powerful country in the world is too serious to ignore. The crisis of the American political system was laid bare that night, and that crisis is still going.