Despite Backlash, Jake Tapper’s Book on Biden’s Decline Becomes a Bestseller Online
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CNN host Jake Tapper’s new book, Original Sin, has set off a political firestorm. The book claims that President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline was more severe behind the scenes than what was publicly visible and that those in Biden’s inner circle were engaged in a cover-up to hide the extent of his diminishing memory.
Original Sin, subtitled President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, was cowritten by Tapper and Axios journalist Alex Thompson. It’s already a bestseller online, currently sitting at #4 on Amazon and the top 25 of Bookshop.org’s charts.
Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again
The book arrives on May 20 from publisher Penguin, just days after Biden announced an “aggressive” prostate cancer diagnosis.
While Biden’s disastrous June 2024 debate performance set off alarm bells and prompted calls for Biden to drop out of the race, the book alleges that Biden’s cognitive problems began much earlier, with Cabinet meetings following scripts as early as 2021.
Some Democrats on social media have criticized Tapper for not focusing on the incumbent’s calamitous presidency, while conservatives argued that Tapper’s coverage of Biden during the campaign was part of the cover-up. Biden’s granddaughter Naomi ripped into the book’s authors, calling it “political fairy smut for the permanent, professional chattering class.” Biden’s office released a statement last week that read, “We’re 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.”
Despite the backlash, some prominent Democrats have conceded that Biden staying in the race was a mistake.
Senator Chris Murphy told NBC’s Meet the Press, “It was a mistake for Democrats to not listen to the voters earlier and set up a process that would have gotten us in a position where we could have been more competitive that fall.” Former Representative Beto O’Rourke told Pod Save America, “Just to be clear, Biden should not have run again. And to be even more clear, he failed this country in the most important job that he had.”
Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson are currently on a book tour through June.