A well-known political truth is that the cover-up is often worse than the crime. CNN anchor Jake Tapper now finds himself in the spotlight for allegedly covering up concerns about President Joe Biden’s mental decline—only to profit from exposing it years later.
Tapper, already entangled in a defamation lawsuit, is set to release a new book titled Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, co-authored with Axios correspondent Alex Thompson. The book, due for release on March 20, claims that Biden’s aides actively misled the public about his cognitive state. However, critics argue that Tapper himself helped dismiss these concerns before they became undeniable.
Resurfaced Interview Sparks Controversy
Conservatives are now pointing to a 2020 interview in which Tapper shut down Lara Trump, daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump, when she raised concerns about Biden’s cognitive health.
During the interview, Lara Trump stated:
“What we see on stage with Biden, Jake, is clearly a cognitive decline. That’s what I’m referring to.”
Tapper immediately pushed back, accusing her of mocking Biden’s stutter:
“I think you were mocking his stutter, and I think you have absolutely no standing to diagnose somebody’s cognitive decline.”
At the time, Tapper and other media figures dismissed these concerns. But four years later, his new book echoes the very claims he once rejected.
A Sudden Shift in Narrative
Now, Tapper and his publisher, Penguin Press, describe Biden’s reelection bid as “shockingly narcissistic, self-delusional, and reckless.” The book argues that Biden’s inner circle, convinced only he could beat Trump, covered up his mental decline—misleading both allies and voters.
Critics are calling out Tapper’s change in stance, with conservative commentator Stephen Miller posting on X:
“Here’s Jake Tapper incensed over Joe Biden’s ‘stutter’ and outraged over claims of Biden’s cognitive decline. Now he’s cashing in on a book about Biden’s cognitive decline and media cover-up. There is no bottom for these people.”
The Irony Behind Tapper’s Book Deal
In a twist, Tapper previously lost a book deal about the Biden presidency in 2023 due to low interest in political books. But after Biden dropped out of the race and Kamala Harris lost to Trump, public interest in Biden’s failed reelection surged. Suddenly, books exposing Biden’s “original sin”—his decision to run again—are in high demand.
Tapper’s book describes the consequences:
“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 only one term, they denied the existence of health issues the nation had been watching for years—ultimately dooming the Democrats to defeat.”
Now, as Tapper attempts to rewrite history, many are asking: Should he acknowledge his own role in dismissing the very concerns he now profits from?
