Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again

By Jake Tapper

Book Overview

THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

"Superbly reported . . . Reads like a Shakespearean drama on steroids." -- Los Angeles Times

"Explosive." --The New York Times

" The] most significant book to date about Biden's cognitive decline." -- The Atlantic

"Destined to stand alongside classics like Theodore White's The Making of the President 1960 and even Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward's All the President's Men as one of the great books about American electoral politics." -- Richard Aldous, Persuasion

From two of America's most respected journalists comes an unflinching and explosive reckoning with one of the most fateful decisions in American political history: Joe Biden's run for reelection despite evidence of his serious decline--amid desperate efforts to hide the extent of that deterioration.

In Greek tragedy, the protagonist's effort to avoid his fate is what seals his fate. In 2024, American politics became a Greek tragedy.

Joe Biden launched his successful 2020 bid for the White House with the stated goal of saving the nation from a second Trump presidential term. He, his family, and his senior aides were so convinced that only he could beat Trump again, they lied to themselves, allies, and the public about his condition and limitations. At his debate with Trump on June 27, 2024, the consequences of that deception were exposed to the world. It was shocking and upsetting.

Now the full, unsettling truth is being told for the first time. Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson take us behind closed doors and into private conversations between the heaviest of hitters, revealing how big the problem was and how many people knew about it. From White House staffers at the highest to lowest levels, to leaders of Congress and the Cabinet, from governors to donors and Hollywood players, the truth is finally being told. What you will learn makes President Biden's decision to run for reelection seem shockingly narcissistic, self-delusional, and reckless--a desperate bet that went bust--and part of a larger act of extended public deception that has few precedents. The story the authors tell raises fundamental issues of accountability and responsibility that will continue for decades.

The irony is biting: In the name of defeating what they called an existential threat to democracy, Biden and his inner circle ensured it, tossing aside his implicit promise to serve for only one term, denying the existence of health issues the nation had been watching for years, dooming the Democrats to defeat. The decision to run again, the Original Sin of this president, led to a campaign of denial and gaslighting, leading directly to Donald Trump's return to power and all that has happened as a consequence. Rarely does hubris meet nemesis more explosively. Wherever you stand on the political spectrum, Original Sin is essential reading.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0DTYKCJC9
• ISBN13: 9798217060672
• Release Date: May 2025
• Publisher: Penguin Press
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 6.3" x 9.9"

Customer Reviews

Biased

He's one to talk, look at our current conman/creep who is president, and won't release the e files which is significantly worse than anything Biden did.

A gaping political reach.

Was hoping for some solid information, but just a political stunt in binding. Biased and not factual by very simple research

Necessary Book, well written

It was essential that this book be written and be written by authors who don't dislike President Biden and probably even voted for him, but are disillusioned that the President's inner circle and family allowed and encouraged an elderly statesman to run for a second term, deceiving the American public. It is disheartening that both Democrats and Republicans are so power hungry that they encourage such behavior. Very well written and audio version voiced by Jake Tapper powerfully presented.