New book reveals Dems had concerns about Biden’s age years before botched 2024 debate
A new book shedding light on President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline and his administration’s alleged cover-up has sparked a reckoning within the Democratic Party. “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,” co-authored by CNN anchor Jake Tapper and Axios political correspondent Alex Thompson, delves into the concerns raised by Biden’s aides regarding his mental acuity long before the critical 2024 presidential debate against former President Donald Trump.
According to the book, Biden’s aides first became alarmed during an arduous bus tour in Iowa in December 2019 when the President struggled to recall the name of his longtime aide, Mike Donilon. This incident raised red flags among his team, who had noticed a decline in his cognitive abilities. Throughout the 2020 campaign trail, aides reportedly navigated through debate performances and avoided challenging interviews as Biden’s communication skills deteriorated.
The book further reveals the campaign’s efforts to shield Biden from public scrutiny, with aides resorting to loading scripted responses into prompters to assist him during interviews. Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden’s aides doubted his ability to sustain the demanding campaign schedule without assistance.
As the campaign progressed, Biden’s struggles became more apparent, particularly during virtual interactions with voters at the Democratic National Convention. Democrats who observed these interactions expressed concerns about his fitness for the presidency, likening his performance to that of an elderly relative who should not be driving.
The book also delves into the impact of Beau Biden’s battle with cancer on the President and his family. Following Beau’s death in 2015, the Bidens allegedly engaged in efforts to downplay or mislead the media about the extent of his illness. Beau’s wife, Hallie, reportedly questioned the need for secrecy surrounding his health condition.
While a Biden spokesperson refuted the allegations of a cover-up or conspiracy in the book, claiming that the President effectively fulfilled his duties, the revelations presented by Tapper and Thompson paint a different picture. The book highlights the challenges faced by the Biden administration in managing the President’s cognitive decline and the lengths to which they went to conceal his struggles from the public.
As the Democratic Party grapples with the implications of Biden’s cognitive decline, the book serves as a critical examination of the President’s tenure and raises important questions about transparency and accountability in government. The revelations presented in “Original Sin” underscore the complexities of leadership and the challenges posed by aging in the highest office in the land.
