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Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again
- GenresPolitics
1 pages, Audio CD
Published July 8, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 25, 2026
If the original sin was Biden's choice to run/the cover up of why he shouldn't have, the second sin was Tapper's choice to release this reporting months after it would've been useful.
December 13, 2025
This was a great work of journalism. I knew when I picked it up that it would be an interesting read, but this blew my expectations out of the water!
The book primarily focuses on those figures in Biden’s close political orbit during his administration, or, as the book refers to them: “The Politburo”, and their role in covering up Biden’s rapidly declining fitness. The authors go to great lengths to document the ways in which Biden’s administration was uniquely closed off, with only this very small group of officials (between 4-6 at any given time) having real and frequent access to the president, and more insidiously, how these individuals controlled the flow of information to the president, often to their own ends. These shadowy figures maneuvered to force a non-competitive DNC primary in 2023, slandered any journalists or party members who questioned Biden’s fitness to serve, and worked tirelessly to ensure that the president remain largely insulated from the public facing of his declining abilities by providing teleprompters, pre-scripting interviews, and greatly diminishing his public appearances. All of this culminating in the disastrous June 27th debate against Donald Trump and his resignation 28 days later.
The books also sheds a lot of light on Biden’s often tragic personal life, and the effects that these had on his focus and mental acuity. Everyone seems to note that Biden’s decline really began with the death of his Son, Beau Biden, in 2015, and was made much worse by the frequent and often dramatic episodes of his other son Hunter Biden, in the aftermath. Hunter’s struggles with addiction and eventually the law caused a the president a great deal of distress and seemed to further accelerate his decline. It is no surprise that Hunter Biden’s very public and very embarrassing trial for possession of an illegal firearm took place days before his first, and last debate. I was often shocked to read the sections of the book about hunter. I remembered the trial and that he was generally embarrassing, but I only realize now just how much of disaster he was for his father, his family, and himself.
The book also did not push its premise too far. The Authors were not arguing that Biden was completely incapable of being the president or that he was being directly controlled by the Politburo (though they do suggest that the Politburo did often use their gatekeeping of access to the President in order to advance their own political agendas). Instead, the book is arguing that while Biden was often still able to engage with and shape politics, make quick decisions, and discharge his duties as president, he could no longer be counted on to ALWAYS be able to do this, and he certainly couldn’t be counted on to effectively communicate with and sell his vision to the American people. And the efforts that he and his closest allies made to conceal these problems from the American people was a serious scandal and abuse of trust by the political elite.
I loved this book.
5/5
The book primarily focuses on those figures in Biden’s close political orbit during his administration, or, as the book refers to them: “The Politburo”, and their role in covering up Biden’s rapidly declining fitness. The authors go to great lengths to document the ways in which Biden’s administration was uniquely closed off, with only this very small group of officials (between 4-6 at any given time) having real and frequent access to the president, and more insidiously, how these individuals controlled the flow of information to the president, often to their own ends. These shadowy figures maneuvered to force a non-competitive DNC primary in 2023, slandered any journalists or party members who questioned Biden’s fitness to serve, and worked tirelessly to ensure that the president remain largely insulated from the public facing of his declining abilities by providing teleprompters, pre-scripting interviews, and greatly diminishing his public appearances. All of this culminating in the disastrous June 27th debate against Donald Trump and his resignation 28 days later.
The books also sheds a lot of light on Biden’s often tragic personal life, and the effects that these had on his focus and mental acuity. Everyone seems to note that Biden’s decline really began with the death of his Son, Beau Biden, in 2015, and was made much worse by the frequent and often dramatic episodes of his other son Hunter Biden, in the aftermath. Hunter’s struggles with addiction and eventually the law caused a the president a great deal of distress and seemed to further accelerate his decline. It is no surprise that Hunter Biden’s very public and very embarrassing trial for possession of an illegal firearm took place days before his first, and last debate. I was often shocked to read the sections of the book about hunter. I remembered the trial and that he was generally embarrassing, but I only realize now just how much of disaster he was for his father, his family, and himself.
The book also did not push its premise too far. The Authors were not arguing that Biden was completely incapable of being the president or that he was being directly controlled by the Politburo (though they do suggest that the Politburo did often use their gatekeeping of access to the President in order to advance their own political agendas). Instead, the book is arguing that while Biden was often still able to engage with and shape politics, make quick decisions, and discharge his duties as president, he could no longer be counted on to ALWAYS be able to do this, and he certainly couldn’t be counted on to effectively communicate with and sell his vision to the American people. And the efforts that he and his closest allies made to conceal these problems from the American people was a serious scandal and abuse of trust by the political elite.
I loved this book.
5/5
September 28, 2025
Well written but old news to anyone who pays attention to newspapers, CNN, MSNBC, and their own checkbook.
A very sad story. My feeling, though, is that those of us who want a better world for ourselves, our children, our grandchildren, must start taking action instead of continuing to focus on the current administration.
I read half of Tapper and Thompson's book; it put me to sleep.
A very sad story. My feeling, though, is that those of us who want a better world for ourselves, our children, our grandchildren, must start taking action instead of continuing to focus on the current administration.
I read half of Tapper and Thompson's book; it put me to sleep.
January 26, 2026
This breaks my heart to read. I wanted to believe so many things. My eyes weren’t wrong I just was focused on what I didn’t want more. Biden has a legacy and unfortunately his reluctance to be the bridge candidate he promised will forever tarnish it, and the years to follow he has to own allowing to happen because of the greed for power.
September 23, 2025
This was fascinating. Some aspects of this story had been revealed before the release. Putting the pieces together in this way, with public and private sources, gave a more complete picture of what was happening behind the scenes. Highly recommend the audio version narrated by Jake Tapper.
July 10, 2025
Sad but true. Very informative.
August 13, 2025
I found out allot of things and knew stuff. Man, if this was as true as this book says, people were seriously stupid enough to deny something was wrong
September 21, 2025
The degree of coverup -I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but certainly diminishes belief in truth of what you’re told
September 30, 2025
Nothing like selling the story you helped bury, Jake. In effect, monetizing your own failure.
The book pulls back the curtain on the democrat machine, and what it reveals may be the most massive ethical breach ever committed by a sitting government.
The book pulls back the curtain on the democrat machine, and what it reveals may be the most massive ethical breach ever committed by a sitting government.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews