Jake Tapper Puts Blame for Biden's Downfall Squarely Back on Biden
Jake Tapper, CNN anchor and co-author of the new book Original Sin, detailing the alleged 'cover-up' of the true depths of Joe Biden's cognitive decline, has told Bill Maher that the former president should share some of the blame for his own downfall.
'Who do we blame?' Maher asked on Friday's episode of Real Time With Bill Maher. Maher joked that the president's wife, Dr. Jill Biden, is 'getting the Yoko treatment,' taking the blame when it is perhaps undeserved.
'Yes, I think it was Jill Biden,' Tapper agreed. 'I also think it's Hunter Biden. I also think President Biden has some agency here, too. We're not saying it was Weekend at Bernie's,' Tapper explained.
The reference to the 1989 slapstick comedy, in which a pair of insurance brokers puppeteer the corpse of their boss in order to enjoy the perks of his Hamptons beach house, drew laughs from the audience. Tapper doubled down, clarifying that it wasn't like the film.
'He had moments where he was non-functioning but he understood what was going on. We saw him earlier today: He can speak and talk. If he was here right now, he could talk for 10 to 15 minutes, he'd be fine.'
Tapper did go on to explain that it was a concerted effort to conceal the president's health issues from the public and the media, as there were fears that unless he ran against Trump in the 2024 election, the Democrats would lose.
'There was a period in 2023-2024 where Democratic lawmakers barely saw the president,' Tapper noted, saying that even senior party officials and White House administration staff had been kept in the dark.
Ultimately, as Biden's health issues became too painful to ignore, the president was swapped out for his vice president, Kamala Harris, in the 2024 election—a move that did not reverse Democrats' fortunes.
Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA), joining Tapper on the show, agreed with his assessment that an 'omerta' was in place amongst the 'inner circle' not to speak openly about the realities of the president's health.
'Donald Trump, Democrats perceived him to be an existential threat to the world and only Joe Biden had ever beaten Trump,' Tapper said.
'Therefore, he had to be the nominee again and any word that deviated from that was helping Trump,' Tapper explained, before concluding: 'That's how the Biden people sold it to themselves.'
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