Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

Former Top WH Advisor Finds Convenient Way To Wiggle Out Of Question About Biden’s Health

[Screenshot/Politico]

Former Biden-era national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Thursday he had little idea that former President Joe Biden’s health had declined.

Sullivan said during a Politico forum his administrative role prevented him from weighing in on whether Biden should have run for reelection in 2024 because he was so “insulated” from political decision-making. He did not give a clear answer on whether Biden made a “mistake” by running for a second term.

“One of the things about being national security adviser is that you’re mercifully insulated from politics and political decision-making,” Sullivan said. “I was insulated from it to the point where while I was national security adviser, my spouse was running for Congress and I had strict rules on what I could even do to support my spouse, let alone be involved in political decision-making, political calls in the White House. So I have weighed in on those issues and would not weigh in on those issues.”

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New details have emerged on Biden’s deteriorating physical and mental state in excerpts from “Original Sin,” a soon-to-be released book written by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson. In the second half of Biden’s term, White House aides reportedly considered putting him in a wheelchair due to his halting walk and severe spine degeneration, though they feared that would damage his chances of getting re-elected, Axios first reported, citing Tapper and Thompson’s book.

His aides often attributed Biden’s halting walk to a fracture he suffered in his foot in November 2020, according to Axios. However, Biden’s personal physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, said at the time that Biden’s small foot fractures had completely healed.

O’Connor privately warned Biden’s team that a “wheelchair might be necessary” if he suffered from one more fall in 2023 or 2024, according to Axios. He had also expressed concern over the toll the presidency was taking on Biden’s health and often pushed for White House staff to add more rest time into his schedule.

After Biden tripped over a sandbag in June 2023, his aides became increasingly more cautious to avoid another fall before the 2024 election by figuring out shorter walking paths, insisting on using handrails on stairs, and having him wear sneakers, Axios reported.

The corporate media, the White House and Democrats often branded concerns about Biden’s health as a “right-wing narrative” until the June 27 presidential debate, where Biden spoke with a raspy voice and often appeared confused. Following the debate, Democrats began calling on Biden to drop out of the race in order to have a chance of defeating the then-Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump.

Tapper previously defended Biden against critics who dared point to any signs that he was declining. In 2020, he scolded Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, who stated that Biden was suffering from a “cognitive decline.”

Thompson blamed the Biden administration for covering up the former president’s mental decline and criticized the media for remaining silent on the matter during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.