Democrats keep trying to move past the cover up around Biden's decline. It's not helping their credibility
The two reporters are due to release Original Sin, a collection of their reporting on the cover up around Biden's mental and physical decline, on May 20. The book's excerpts are already causing a ruckus, as they detail startling instances of Biden's gaps in mental acuity that were reportedly hidden from the public through 2024.
Biden, whom aides reportedly considered putting in a wheelchair at points, reportedly did not recognize Hollywood megastar George Clooney at an event the president had flown in to Los Angeles specifically for Clooney to host on his behalf. Other excerpts claimed he forgot the names of longtime aides, including that of his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan.
The top quote of the week: 'It's all Biden. He totally f***ed us.'
David Plouffe's declaration in Original Sin gives voice to the party's furious silent undercurrent of supporters, many of whom did vote for Kamala Harris in 2024 but still watched helplessly on election night as she underperformed nationally and lost ground to Republicans even in deep blue states. The architect of Barack Obama's 2008 campaign juggernaut, Plouffe's complaint followed an evisceration of the Biden administration policy on Israel/Gaza by the Obamaworld hosts of Pod Save the World.
The right, meanwhile, keeps hammering the two reporters and the Washington media at large for the so-called revelations. Arguing that reporters (including from Tapper's network, CNN) led the charge to hide Biden's deficiencies, Republicans argued this week that the two are attempting to cash in on their own failures.
They are correct to do so. Democrats (led by Biden's inner circle and a defiant president himself) willingly undermined their own credibility by getting the party into this mess, and should show some capacity for self-reflection — not more breathless attacks on the press — to overcome it.
'I think some of the criticism is fair, to be honest,' said Tapper on Wednesday.
Inside Washington claims at least partial innocence here; in February of 2024, we wrote that Biden's age provoked real questions for voters, and that his team 'risk[ed] being seen as trying to conceal something' by ignoring those concerns. But with the imminent release of Tapper and Thompson's book, questions are likely to be raised about just how far back the former president's decline really went.
Many Bidenworld loyalists continue to circle the wagons, in true Trumpian fashion. Whether denying the book's revelations outright or chastising reporters falsely for 'focusing' on the issue, the former president and his loyalists continue to insist that they are beyond reproach.
"The only reason I got out of the race was because I didn't want to have a divided Democratic Party," he told the hosts of The View this month.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, interviewed this week by CNN's Kasie Hunt, dodged questions on the issue entirely.
MSNBC's Chuck Todd, who called the criticism of the media a 'right-wing manufactured' narrative, tore into Schumer on a CNN panel.
'He's as responsible as anybody else,' said Todd. 'He was a leader in the party. He could've said something sooner, and he didn't.'
The defenses are beginning to become grating to hear even for Democrats, who believe that Biden is doing himself no favors.
Steve Schale, who ran the 'Draft Biden' PAC ahead of the 2016 primary, said: 'There is a way for President Biden to build his post-presidency, but this isn't it.
'I really wish he'd embrace the thing that's been his calling card for 50 years: his humanity.'
Most importantly: the president's defenders give voters the impression that Democrats are still engaged in deception — at a time when the party's supposed advantages include Donald Trumps' low marks for honesty and integrity.
The ex-president was underwater on this issue through the entirety of 2024. The release of Original Sin is going to be the last nail in the coffin, not the first.
No one is going to believe the denials now — especially when many of the people making them insisted that there were no problems and that the president wouldn't even consider withdrawing from the race.
It's time for Joe to ride off into the sunset. His defenders need to stop lashing out at everyone around them and get back to rebuilding voter trust ahead of the next election cycle.
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Politico
30 minutes ago
- Politico
Thune's pre-recess game plan
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Thune has warned his members to prepare to vote at least through this weekend after the president urged senators to stay in Washington through August to wrap up the work, though many lawmakers aren't pleased with that idea. They're eager, instead, to get back to their home states, especially as they look to counter Democratic messaging against the freshly-passed GOP megabill. Other Senate Republicans say they're ready to give Trump what he's after. Over the weekend, Sen. Mike Lee repeatedly urged his colleagues to either work through August to advance nominations or cancel all pro-forma sessions over the next month to allow Trump to make recess appointments. 'The Senate can't have it both ways,' Lee said in a post on X. Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley also said he's on board with the president's call for the Senate to stick around to vote on nominations through August, writing on X, 'Trump needs his administration in place.' Republicans have typically been unenthused by the idea of recess appointments, though, and it's unlikely they'd go along with that plan. And while Thune is threatening to keep the Senate in session deeper into August, many lawmakers view it as just that: a threat to get Democrats to cut a deals on nominations to get out of town. 'I think it's fair to say that we're going keep the pressure on the Democrats to, you know, stay here until either they cooperate or we're just going to grind it out and do it the old fashioned way,' Thune told Jordain. GOOD MONDAY MORNING. Email us at mmccarthy@ jcarney@ crazor@ and bguggenheim@ Follow our live coverage at WHAT WE'RE WATCHINGWith help from Jordan Williams The House will meet for a pro forma session at 2 p.m. The Senate is in session and will vote to move forward with David Wright's nomination to be a Nuclear Regulatory Commission member at 5:30 p.m. Lawmakers will vote to confirm Wright and move forward with Earl Matthews' nomination to be DOD general counsel at 8 p.m. — Senate Agriculture will consider the nominations of Brian Quintenz to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Michael Boren to be under secretary of agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment at 5:30 p.m. The rest of the week: The Senate will continue marking up government funding bills and confirming the president's nominations. Pro subscribers receive this newsletter with a full congressional schedule and can browse our comprehensive calendar of markups, hearings and other notable events around Washington. 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New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Epstein furor undermines public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say
The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration, as well as Republican hopes of retaining control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, two US lawmakers said on Sunday. Republican Representative Thomas Massie and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, who want the House of Representatives to vote on their bipartisan resolution requiring full release of the government's Epstein files, said the lack of transparency is reinforcing public perceptions that the rich and powerful live beyond the reach of the judicial system. 'This is going to hurt Republicans in the midterms. The voters will be apathetic if we don't hold the rich and powerful accountable,' Massie, a hardline conservative from Kentucky, told NBC's 'Meet the Press' program. Advertisement 4 President Donald Trump at Trump Turnberry golf club in Turnberry, Scotland on July 27, 2025. Getty Images Republicans hope to add to their current 219-212 House majority – with four seats currently vacant – and 53-47 Senate majority in November 2026, although the US political cycle traditionally punishes the party of the sitting president during midterm elections. The Washington Post reported late on Sunday that Trump was increasingly frustrated with his administration's handling of the furor around Epstein. Advertisement Even so, the president was hesitant to make personnel changes to avoid creating a 'bigger spectacle' as his top officials underestimated the outrage from Trump's own base over the issue, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed sources. Khanna said Attorney General Pam Bondi triggered 'a crisis of trust' by saying there was no list of Epstein clients after previously implying that one existed. The change in position unleashed a tsunami of calls for her resignation from Trump's MAGA base. 'This is about trust in government,' the California Democrat told 'Meet the Press.' 'This is about being a reform agent of transparency.' Advertisement 4 The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration. AP President Donald Trump, who on Sunday announced an EU trade deal in Scotland, has been frustrated by continued questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and 2019 death by suicide in prison. Massie and Khanna believe they can win enough support from fellow lawmakers to force a vote on their resolution when Congress returns from its summer recess in September. But they face opposition from Republican leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who sent lawmakers home a day early to stymie Democratic efforts to force a vote before the break. Advertisement 4 A photo of the cell where Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide. CBS 60 MINUTES Johnson, who also appeared on NBC's 'Meet the Press,' said he favors a non-binding alternative resolution that calls for release of 'credible' evidence, but which he said would better protect victims including minors. 'The Massie and Khanna discharge petition is reckless in the way that it is drafted and presented,' Johnson said. 'It does not adequately include those protections.' Massie dismissed Johnson's claim as 'a straw man' excuse. 'Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted,' he said. 'They're hiding behind that.' Trump has tried and failed so far to distract attention from the Epstein controversy six months into his second term. 4 Trump shakes hands with US House Speaker Mike Johnson as he hosts a dinner with Republican members of the U.S. Congress in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on July 22, 2025. REUTERS On Saturday, Trump repeated his claims without evidence that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and other Democrats should be prosecuted over payment for endorsements from celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce and the Reverend Al Sharpton. Last week he accused former President Barack Obama of 'treason' over how the Obama administration treated intelligence about Russian interference in US elections nine years ago, drawing a rebuke from an Obama spokesperson. Advertisement Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, said on Sunday that Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence, had found new information that investigators initially discovered no evidence of Russian election interference but changed their position after Obama told them to keep looking. 'I'm not alleging he committed treason, but I am saying it bothers me,' Graham told 'Meet the Press.' Democratic Representative Jason Crow dismissed Gabbard's claims, telling the 'Fox News Sunday' program that the national intelligence director had turned herself into 'a weapon of mass distraction.' The Department of Justice has said it is forming a strike force to assess Gabbard's claims.
Fox News
an hour ago
- Fox News
Illegal immigrants storm US beaches as Coast Guard battles migrant surge that rose under Biden
The rise in illegal immigration that took place by boats under the Biden administration has created unique dangers for law enforcement, according to a border security expert. Maritime illegal immigration, using boats to enter the U.S. illegally, rose during the Biden administration as a result of the political and economic crises of Haiti and Cuba, according to the Migration Policy Institute. In February 2023, the U.S. Naval Institute said that illegal immigrant interdiction operations were in a "state of emergency" due to societal turmoil in Caribbean countries. Along the border between the U.S. and Mexico in California, illegal immigrants attempt to cross into America using boats as well. On July 12, the U.S. Coast Guard interdicted three people who were trying to enter the U.S. illegally by boat and were apprehended at Imperial Beach in San Diego County, California. Two individuals said they were Mexican, while one said they were Turkish. In January, the U.S. Coast Guard intercepted a boat carrying 21 illegal immigrants that was headed toward San Diego. Coast Guard officials and Border Protection officials apprehended the illegal immigrants, who were from various countries. "They don't want anyone to drown and die trying to cross into the U.S. Illegally…" "Initial interviews revealed that all individuals claimed Mexican nationality, although subsequent checks identified two passengers as Guatemalan and Salvadoran nationals," the Coast Guard wrote in a press release. California isn't close to the only state having to handle migrant incursions along its shores. In February, the Coast Guard intercepted 132 Haitians on a boat south of the Florida Keys. The Coast Guard boarded the 30-foot vessel and processed the illegal immigrants before they were repatriated to Haiti, according to officials. "The Coast Guard will continue to prioritize strengthening our domestic integrity and disrupting attempts to enter the United States illegally by sea," said Coast Guard District Seven enforcement officer Lt. Zane Carter. "We are steadfast in our mission to safeguard America by securing our maritime borders." Simon Hankinson, senior research fellow in the Border Security and Immigration Center at The Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital that these interdictions create a unique danger for law enforcement authorities. "Well, I've seen a very different pattern, say, between the U.K. and France versus off the U.S. coast, where it seems to be a variety of, you know, if it's professional smugglers with really fast boats trying to bring people in and drop them off, then that's one thing for the Coast Guard to cope with," Hankinson said. "And if it is people organizing themselves in leaky boats with insufficient engines and overcrowded conditions, then it's a different thing. I think for the Coast Guard, for our law enforcement, that the issue of safety is obviously paramount." "They don't want anyone to drown and die trying to cross into the U.S. Illegally, even if they're not supposed to do it, but they're also probably worried about people carrying weapons who are trying to smuggle drugs and people in for money," he added. Hankinson said the U.S. should look at what's happening in the United Kingdom as a case study on what to avoid. The U.K. saw 19,982 cross the English Channel to enter the country in the first six months of 2025, according to Sky News. That figure is up almost 50% compared to the first six months of 2024. "You know, I was born in England. It's tragic what's happening there," he said. "You have a whole family of Palestinians who were allowed to stay, even though they'd applied under a program for Ukrainians. You know it's a sort of national suicide by generosity."
