In politics, truth is rarely hidden forever. Eventually, the dam breaks. That’s what’s happening now as early excerpts from Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again hit the public square. The new book from CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’s Alex Thompson lays bare what millions of Americans already knew but were relentlessly told not to believe: President Joe Biden wasn’t fit to run for a second term—and hadn’t been fit to lead for quite some time.
What makes Original Sin so damning is not the novelty of its content. The revelations are not new. They’re confirmations. What’s new is the admission—finally—from the very people and institutions that spent years shielding Biden and ridiculing anyone who dared question his competence.
This is not just a story about the physical and cognitive decline of an aging president. It’s about the collapse of credibility in the Democratic Party, the media, and the broader political class. It’s about the lengths to which powerful people will go to maintain control—even if it means misleading the public, obscuring the truth, and risking national stability.
A Presidency Built on Pretending
The Biden administration has always been a façade, a Potemkin presidency engineered by handlers and image consultants rather than driven by ideas or leadership. We now know that White House aides weren’t just aware of Biden’s decline—they were actively preparing for it. According to Original Sin, they considered the possibility of Biden needing a wheelchair after a hypothetical reelection, but only if he won. Optics before honesty. Power before prudence.
He fell repeatedly. He shuffled awkwardly. He forgot names, lost his train of thought mid-sentence, and stared blankly in unscripted moments. The media response? Gaslight the public. Dismiss concerns as “right-wing conspiracy.” The president’s inability to walk unaided or speak clearly was repackaged as “charming” or “folksy.” But behind the scenes, staff rerouted walking paths, added handrails, put him in sneakers, and filmed multiple takes for short video messages.
This wasn’t transparency. This was theater.
Media Collusion and Political Cover-Up
Make no mistake—Biden didn’t pull this off alone. He had help. From compliant media figures to party operatives, there was a full-court press to conceal his decline. For years, questions about Biden’s cognitive fitness were treated as taboo—smirkingly dismissed by cable pundits and “fact-checked” into oblivion.
Those who raised legitimate concerns were branded extremists. Conservative journalists, commentators, and even average citizens were mocked for simply noticing what the camera showed. A president who couldn’t complete a sentence without jump cuts or deliver a speech without wandering off script was portrayed as “sharp as ever” by a press corps that had long since traded skepticism for access.
This wasn’t bias. It was complicity.
The Democratic Delusion
Even Biden’s closest allies knew the truth. The book recounts Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer expressing concern that Biden sometimes forgot why he called during conversations. Other prominent Democrats, including Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi, reportedly hatched a "Plan B" if Biden’s debate performance against Trump imploded—which, of course, it did.
But instead of acting early, they waited. They hoped. They spun. They gambled the future of the country on a hollow campaign because they didn’t want to admit their emperor had no clothes. That is the true scandal—not that Biden declined, but that so many powerful people knew it and chose silence.
The Democrats had years to elevate a capable successor. Instead, they clung to a crumbling narrative, propped up a failing incumbent, and now face the wreckage of that decision.
The Crisis of Confidence
The fallout from this deception goes far beyond one presidency. It cuts to the heart of what Americans think about their government, their media, and their institutions. And it confirms what conservatives have warned for years: The ruling class will protect itself at all costs—even at the expense of the truth, and even when national security is on the line.
Biden didn’t just fall physically. He fell mentally, and institutionally. And the people tasked with informing the public—those who pride themselves on being the gatekeepers of democracy—chose to keep the gate closed.
Let’s be clear: This isn’t about age. It’s about honesty. Franklin Roosevelt led the nation from a wheelchair. But he didn’t pretend to jog. He didn’t pretend to be something he wasn’t. He led openly, with strength and vision. Biden, in contrast, was hidden—propped up by a staff whose main job became controlling the optics, not running the country.
Where Do We Go From Here?
What happened over the last four years wasn’t just political misjudgment. It was a betrayal. Of the country. Of the voters. Of the basic premise that elected leaders serve the people—not the other way around.
Republicans, if they are wise, should take this moment not as an opportunity to spike the football, but as a warning. The next time the machinery of politics and media insists we ignore what’s plainly visible, we must push harder, dig deeper, and refuse to be cowed into silence. No party is immune from the corrupting influence of unchecked power and narrative control.
Original Sin is more than a postmortem of the Biden administration. It’s an indictment of a culture of denial. A case study in institutional rot. A reminder that when elites decide they know better than the public, they will say anything—and hide everything—to stay in control.
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