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Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Biden says he could 'beat the hell out of' authors of new book arguing his cognitive decline
Former President Joe Biden joked Friday he could take on those who questioned his mental faculties following his first public remarks since announcing he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Biden's statement comes after several books have been released detailing his mental deterioration while in office, including the book, "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again," that was released May 20. "You can see that I'm mentally incompetent, I can't walk," Biden quipped with reporters Friday after speaking at a Memorial Day event. "And I could beat the hell out of both of them." Biden appeared to be referencing the book's authors, Jake Tapper of CNN and Alex Thompson of Axios. Biden's First Public Remarks Since Cancer Diagnosis Honor Gold Star Families The reporters' book claims that Biden struggled to string together coherent sentences for campaign ad videos, that his Cabinet meetings were "so scripted" and that Biden's team allegedly plotted a cover-up to hide just how severely his mental faculties had declined. Read On The Fox News App But Biden's team has pushed back on the material included in the book. "There is nothing in this book that shows Joe Biden failed to do his job, as the authors have alleged, nor did they prove their allegation that there was a cover up or conspiracy," a Biden spokesperson said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Nowhere do they show that our national security was threatened or where the President wasn't otherwise engaged in the important matters of the Presidency. In fact, Joe Biden was an effective President who led our country with empathy and skill." Biden Family Misled Public, Concealed Details On Son Beau's Cancer Diagnosis, New Book Says In addition to the publication of multiple books this year chronicling the deterioration of Biden's mental faculties, leaked audio recordings of Biden's October 2023 interview with former Special Counsel Robert Hur were released in May, showing that Biden struggled to not slur his words and even appeared to forget the year his son died. Biden revealed May 18 that he had an "aggressive form" of prostate cancer, and his office later said he had never received a prostate cancer diagnosis before. Biden told reporters Friday that he is "optimistic" about his diagnosis and is currently receiving treatment in the form of a pill. Biden's Sad Prostate Cancer Diagnosis: Unanswered Questions And Maga Attacks "My expectation is we're going to be able to beat this," Biden said. Earlier Friday, Biden appeared at a Memorial Day sponsored by the Delaware Commission of Veteran Affairs where he honored service members who had lost their lives. "We come together and remember the debt we owe to the American military," Biden said at the event, sponsored by the Delaware Commission of Veteran Affairs. "The military is a solid spine, the spine of our nation," he said. "Our troops, our veterans, our military families, and our Gold Star families in particular. Only around 1% of all Americans defend 99% of us — 1%. Just 1% of Americans risk the ultimate sacrifice. We owe them so much more than we can ever repay them."Original article source: Biden says he could 'beat the hell out of' authors of new book arguing his cognitive decline
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Jake Tapper's CNN show hits lowest ratings since 2015 despite new Biden book buzz, intense publicity tour
CNN host Jake Tapper had his lowest-rated month in nearly a decade in May despite a whirlwind publicity tour giving him an onslaught of attention. Tapper and Axios reporter Alex Thompson's new book, "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again," was released in May to much fanfare. The book helped set the recent news cycle with new accusations of the Biden White House hiding the truth about the former president's fitness for office. To promote the project, Tapper has embarked on a wide-ranging book tour that landed him on a variety of podcasts, talk shows and cable news. The book has also been promoted relentlessly across CNN, but the spotlight on Tapper has seemingly failed to give him a boost in viewership. Tapper Admits Feeling 'Humility' About Past Biden Coverage As Liberals Disparage New Book "The Lead with Jake Tapper" averaged 525,000 total viewers from April 28 through May 25, shedding 25% of CNN's audience in its timeslot from the same period last year in the process. By comparison, Fox News offerings "The Five" and "Special Report with Bret Baier" averaged 3.3 million viewers from April 28 through May 25, trouncing Tapper. Read On The Fox News App MSNBC also beat Tapper among total viewers, as programming on the progressive network averaged a little over one million viewers in the timeslot. As a result, Tapper settled for only 11% of the cable news audience share, while MSNBC managed 21% and Fox News commanded 68% during the timeframe. It was Tapper's lowest-rated month since August 2015. Click Here For More Coverage Of Media And Culture "The Lead with Jake Tapper" is also down from last year among the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults aged 25-54. Tapper's newscast averaged only 95,000 viewers among the critical demo from April 28 through May 25, for a 15% drop. "The Lead with Jake Tapper" wasn't the only CNN offering to struggle, as the network had its second-worst month ever in the demo across both total day and primetime during May. While Tapper's efforts to promote "Original Sin" haven't helped viewership, the CNN host has managed to generate headlines by admitting he didn't report on Biden's age issues aggressively enough and declaring the cover-up of the former president's mental decline may be a worse scandal than Watergate. When reached for comment, CNN noted that Nielsen Media Research only reflects CNN's audience in the United States, but Tapper's program airs on other platforms. "The award-winning program The Lead with Jake Tapper reaches broad global audiences across CNN, CNN International and Max's streaming platform. No single metric can capture the true reach and impact of a program driving the national conversation," a CNN spokesperson told Fox News Digital. Ratings information courtesy of Nielsen Media article source: Jake Tapper's CNN show hits lowest ratings since 2015 despite new Biden book buzz, intense publicity tour
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joe Biden Diagnosed With 'Aggressive Form' Of Prostate Cancer
Former president Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an 'aggressive form' of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, according to media reports based on an official statement from his personal office. Per the statement, Biden and his family are reviewing treatment options. More from Deadline Aline Brosh McKenna's Lean Machine Options Jonathan Allen & Amie Parnes' 2024 Presidential Campaign Book 'Fight' Joe Biden Didn't Seem To Recognize George Clooney At 2024 Los Angeles Fundraiser, New Book Details Joe Biden Tells 'The View' That He Wasn't Surprised That Donald Trump Won 2024 Election, Blames Sexism And Covid On Kamala Harris' Loss 'Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms. On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone,' the statement said. 'While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.' The news comes as Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson's co-authored Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, on the former POTUS' cognitive decline, is set to be released on Tuesday. More to come… Best of Deadline Sean 'Diddy' Combs Sex-Trafficking Trial Updates: Cassie Ventura's Testimony, $10M Hotel Settlement, Drugs, Violence, & The Feds 'Nine Perfect Strangers' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out? Everything We Know About Ari Aster's 'Eddington' So Far
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Jake Tapper admits he didn't cover Biden's cognitive decline enough, claims to 'look back on it with humility'
CNN anchor Jake Tapper is now admitting he didn't provide enough coverage of former President Joe Biden's cognitive decline as his reporting during the previous administration draws scrutiny from critics. Tapper appeared on his network Wednesday morning while promoting his new book, "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again," set to be released next week. He was asked what he made of his conservative critics who've been speaking out against him and the rest of the media over their lack of coverage exposing Biden's mental acuity while he was in office. "I think some of the criticism is fair, to be honest, of me," Tapper responded. "Certainly I'm not going to speak for anybody else, but knowing then what I know now, I look back at my coverage during the Biden years and I did cover some of these issues, but not enough. I look back on it with humility." Jake Tapper's Past Coverage Of Biden's Cognitive Decline Under Scrutiny Ahead Of His New Book Tapper went on to say that he and his co-author Alex Thompson learned through their reporting after the election that there were "two Bidens" around 2019-2020, one that was "perfectly workable" and the other one being "non-functioning." The latter, Tapper said, "reared his head increasingly" throughout his presidency. "And look, while it was very important – and I'm not dismissing the coverage of Biden tripping on stage or falling off his bike, that was obviously indicative of something serious that was going on – I think what we learned about the non-functioning Biden rearing his head increasingly, not being able to come up with the name of George Clooney, not being able to come up with the name of top aides in the White House," Tapper told his CNN colleague John Berman. Read On The Fox News App "I think that really reveals something even more significant, something even more disturbing, about a president that was not what we, the American people, should expect and be able to demand, which is somebody who is there with it 24/7, there for the 2 A.M. emergency phone call in the middle of the night," Tapper added. Shielding Biden: Journalists Shed Light On The Media's Cover-up Of A Weakened President Fox News Digital published a report Wednesday that outlined the coverage he dedicated to Biden leading up to his disastrous debate performance that forced him out of the 2024 presidential race. His most aggressive coverage took place in February 2024 in the wake of Biden's press conference responding in outrage to the Hur report. Special Counsel Robert Hur declined to bring charges against Biden in the classified documents case because he determined a jury would not convict someone perceived as an "elderly man with a poor memory," based on his interview with investigators. In interviews with Biden during the 2020 campaign and during his presidency, Tapper broached the subject of his age. However, he pumped the brakes on covering Biden's cognitive decline in the heat of the 2024 election cycle, avoiding coverage of the viral moments showing Biden freezing or wandering off, which at the time the Biden White House dubbed "cheap fakes." Tapper similarly ignored Biden's "Where's Jackie?" gaffe from September 2022 when he called out for the late Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., at an event honoring her memory after she died in a tragic car accident weeks prior. Ex-cnn Journalist Speaks Out On Biden Cover-up, Says White House Aides Made It Difficult On Press Tapper also repeatedly defended Biden from his critics. In September 2023, Tapper asserted that Biden was mentally "sharp" while discussing Nikki Haley demanding cognitive tests for older politicians, suggesting that questions swirling around the president were only about whether he was "physically" able to do the job. And in March 2024, following Biden's high-energy State of the Union address filled with shouting and attacking Republicans, Tapper took a swipe at the president's conservative critics who previously accused him of being "weak" and "senile." "He certainly seemed like an 81-year-old, but he didn't seem incapable of doing the job," Tapper told his panel before dismissing "Weekend at Bernie's" comparisons from the right. A spokesperson for CNN strongly pushed back at the notion that Tapper offered insufficient coverage of the Biden scandal before the debate. "Jake Tapper is a veteran journalist whose tenacious and thorough reporting has held those in power to account on both sides of the aisle for decades," the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "He fairly and accurately covered Senator, Vice President and President Biden through years of dogged Washington reporting, hitting every high and low of the former president's political career." The CNN spokesperson continued, "From the campaign in 2020 to 2024 when he dropped out, Jake raised concerns about President Biden's mental stamina on his shows, questioned Biden officials directly about his health on air, and consistently encouraged open discussion and debate on the issue." Fox News' Hanna Panreck contributed to this article source: Jake Tapper admits he didn't cover Biden's cognitive decline enough, claims to 'look back on it with humility'
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New Book Details Secret Wheelchair Drama During Joe Biden's Campaign
Internal discussions took place about 'putting' Joe Biden in a wheelchair during the 2024 campaign, but advisers squelched the idea because the move would be 'politically untenable' ― at least until after the election. So says a new book, 'Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.' According to an Axios summary Tuesday adapted from the book, Biden's inner circle was alarmed at the incumbent's physical decline, which had become apparent in falls like the one he experienced at the Air Force Academy graduation in 2023. His own doctor, Kevin O'Connor, had warned that if Biden fell again, a wheelchair could become necessary, 'Original Sin' noted, per Axios. The book, co-authored by Axios' Alex Thompson and CNN's Jake Tapper, comes out May 20. The doctor clashed with Biden's handlers over the amount of 'rest time' allotted in his schedule, and he joked with them that 'they were trying to kill him, while he was trying to keep him alive,' Axios wrote from an excerpt. Worries about a foot injury slowing his gait in 2020 had turned to more serious concerns about his spinal degeneration as the 2024 campaign wore on. According to the book report, the president's camp arranged for handrails up steps during appearances, encouraged him to wear sneakers more often, and choreographed his movements to mitigate mishaps. Biden's orthopedic woes had been public knowledge for some time. A 2021 write-up from the president's doctor, released by the Biden administration, discussed Biden's 'stiffened gait,' which resulted partly from the foot injury as well as spinal arthritis. Another book about the campaign, 'Fight: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House,' revealed earlier that fluorescent tape laid out on a carpet served as 'bread crumbs' for Biden to follow at a reception hosted by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy last summer. An unnamed Biden rep acknowledged Biden's 'physical changes' as he aged but told Axios, 'We are still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline. In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president.' But tension over the president's vigor extended beyond his mobility and mental acuity. His longevity came into question as well. Aides for Harris constructed a 'death-pool roster' of judges who could swear her in if he died, according to 'Fight.' Biden's doddering debate against Donald Trump eventually led to his withdrawal from the presidential race and endorsement of Harris, who lost to Trump in the 2024 election. The former president shocked observers recently when he said his late exit from the race wouldn't have mattered, suggesting Trump's victory was a fait accompli. CNN Anchor Is Caught Making Face At Biden Remark, And His Next Move Is Surprising Joe Biden Gives Stunning Answer When Asked If He Should Have Withdrawn Earlier Biden Torches Trump In First Interview Since Leaving Office: 'What The Hell's Going On Here?'
