Five explosive revelations from book on Joe Biden
Joe Biden’s aides were ready to provide a wheelchair to the ailing president during his ill-fated attempt to run for re-election last year, according to a book of revelations.
Listen to this article
CNN journalists Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson obtained more than 200 interviews with Democratic insiders for their book Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, which will be released on May 20.
A visibly declining Mr Biden made numerous gaffes during his election campaign against Donald Trump before stepping back 107 days before the election to allow his deputy Kamala Harris to run for the party instead.
The 81-year-old then president appeared to lose focus on his subject matter during a humiliating debate against Mr Trump and would sometimes ramble in his speeches, saying the wrong word - or on numerous occasions, giving the wrong name.
But behind the scenes, Mr Biden was struggling to an even greater degree and his staff were regularly worried about his physical and mental decline, according to the new book.
Here are five revelations that the book has provided, according to early readers.
Read more: Joe Biden inks deal with Los Angeles talent agency that reps Tom Cruise and Ariana Grande
Aides were considering putting Biden in a wheelchair
Aides reportedly considered putting Biden in a wheelchair, but ruled this out during his re-election campaign from fear of it being ‘politically untenable’, according to The Times.
“Given Biden’s age,” Mr Tapper and Mr Thompson wrote of the president who left office aged 82, his physician “Also privately said that if he had another bad fall, a wheelchair might be necessary for what could be a difficult recovery”.
Decision to run caused a ‘nightmare’ for the Democrats
One former top aide told the authors that Biden’s late withdrawal “f***ed” the Democrats.
David Plouffe, the manager of Barack Obama’s 2008 winning campaign who was drafted in to help Harris, described the 107-day sprint against Donald Trump as “a f***ing nightmare”.
“We got so screwed by Biden,” Mr Plouffe, one of the rare Democratic insiders to speak on the record, told the authors.
“It’s all Biden. He totally f***ed us.”
Biden given trainers to stop him falling over
Aides went to great lengths to stop Mr Biden from falling after he tripped over a sandbag at the Air Force Academy in June 2023, according to the book.
The president was given trainers to wear more often and provided with handrails when using stages with steps for his public appearances.
Aides stood close to president in case he fell over
Aides also attempted to work out shorter walking paths, stood close to him as he walked in case he fell and gave him visual briefings before events to ensure he knew every step to take.
One senior aide admitted to the authors: “We attempted to shield him from his own staff, so many people didn’t realise the extent of the decline beginning in 2023.”
Biden often forgot names of staff
The former president’s doctor allegedly expressed concern to aides about the toll the presidency was taking on Mr Biden’s health, claiming he needed more rest.
The book also revealed that throughout his time in office, Mr Biden repeatedly forgot the names of longtime aides and allies.
An anonymous Mr Biden aide responded to Axios, one of the first to report on the book: “There were physical changes as he got older, but evidence of aging is not evidence of mental incapacity.
“We are still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline.
"In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president.”
Joe Biden factfile
- The 46th president of the United States, in office 2021-2025. Former senator for Delaware and vice president to Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017.
- Age: 82 (born November 20, 1942)
- Party: Democratic
- Relationships and children: Married to Neilia Hunter from 1966 until her death in 1972. She and their one-year-old daughter Naomi were killed in a car crash. They also had two sons, Hunter and Beau - who died in 2015. Mr Biden married Jill Jacobs in 1972 and they had one daughter, Ashley