Furious Joe Biden regrets choosing Attorney General Merrick Garland to lead the Justice Department after the agency prosecuted his son Hunter, a new book by Bob Woodward claims.
The allegation is just one of a number of bombshell insights into the Biden White House in “War,” out October 15. The book reveals a president desperately trying to stave off war in the Middle East, fearful of Russia unleashing nuclear warfare, and worn down by his wayward son.
Biden also lashes out about everyone from Garland to Vladimir Putin, Benjamin Netnyahu and even Barack Obama — who Biden blames for not stopping Putin’s 2014 invasion of Crimea, raging that “Barack never took Putin seriously.”
The president has publicly said he will not pardon his son’s conviction on three federal gun charges or commute his sentence — but remains privately furious at the AG, writes Woodward, who describes how Biden told an associate he “should never have picked Garland.”
According to the book, Biden moaned, “This is never going to f—king go away” about his son’s longstanding legal problems, including three felony and six misdemeanor tax charges, which he pleaded guilty to in September.
Woodward also describes a scene between the president and his spoiled son at the White House in spring 2022.
While the president was having dinner with a friend, Hunter came in and claimed it was he who had the most to lose from the midterm elections.
“Hunter rambled on about his personal crisis. President Biden leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and sighed,” Woodward writes.
The book, which was obtained by CNN ahead of its release, is based on interviews with those who saw Biden explode.
Here’s who’s found themselves in the firing line:
Benjamin Netanyahu
President Biden blasted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu as a “bad f–king guy,” as Israel’s war on Gaza intensified, Woodward alleges.
The journalist reveals how Biden raged to an associate earlier this year, “That son of a bitch, Bibi Netanyahu, he’s a bad guy. He’s a bad f–king guy!”
Woodward describes the prickly relationship between Biden and Netanyahu as the Middle East descended into chaos following the October 7 terror attack by Hamas on Israel.
While Biden supported Israel publicly, he fought with Netanyahu behind the scenes over how the country was conducting the war in Gaza
“What’s your strategy, man?” Biden asked Netanyahu during an April phone call, Woodward claims. “Bibi, you’ve got no strategy.”
That same month, Israel launched a strike in Syria that killed a top general in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, prompting Iran to launch more than 100 ballistic missiles in response.
The US, along with Saudi Arabia, Jordan and other US allies, came to Israel’s defense. While nearly all of the Iranian missiles were intercepted, Netanyahu wanted to retaliate.
Biden told Netanyahu to “take the win,” but the Israeli prime minister pushed back. “You don’t need to make another move. Do nothing,” Biden said.
In the end, Israel launched a small strike against Iran, which Biden considered a win. But his frustration boiled over as the war continued to escalate.
“Bibi, what the f–-k?” Biden yelled in July this year after an Israeli airstrike killed a top Hezbollah military commander and three civilians in Beirut, according to Woodward.
“You know the perception of Israel around the world increasingly is that you’re a rogue state, a rogue actor,” the president said to Netanyahu.
Netanyahu responded that the target was “one of the leading terrorists.”
“We saw an opportunity and took it,” he said. “The harder you hit, the more successful you’re going to be in the negotiation.”
Vladimir Putin
“That f–king Putin,” Biden raged to advisers soon after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Woodward. “Putin is evil. We are dealing with the epitome of evil.”
Woodward reports that in the lead-up to the invasion, the US in October 2021 obtained intelligence which showed “conclusively” Putin’s plans to storm in with 175,000 troops.
“It was as if [intelligence sources] had secretly entered the enemy commander’s tent and were hunched over the maps,” Woodward writes.
While Biden and his advisers agreed the plan was “dead serious,” it was still hard to believe.
“This would be so crazy …” Biden responded. “Jesus Christ Now I’ve got to deal with Russia swallowing Ukraine?”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the warnings, even after Vice President Kamala Harris told him in February 2022 that an invasion was imminent. After the meeting, Woodward writes, Harris said she was worried it might be the last time they ever saw Zelensky.
But by September 2022, “exquisite” US intelligence reports claimed that Putin was so desperate about battlefield losses in the war on Ukraine that there was a 50% chance he might use tactical nuclear weapons.
The book recounts a tense phone call between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Russian counterpart, Minister Sergei Shoigu, in October 2022.
According to Woodward, Austin warned that nuclear war “would isolate Russia on the world stage to a degree you Russians cannot fully appreciate.”
“I don’t take kindly to being threatened,” Shoigu responded.
“Mr. Minister,” Austin reportedly said. “I am the leader of the most powerful military in the history of the world. I don’t make threats.”
Two days later, the Russians requested another call. This time, Shoigu claimed the Ukrainians were planning to use a “dirty bomb” — a false story the US believed the Kremlin was pushing as a pretext to deploy a nuclear weapon.
Still, “it was probably the most hair-raising moment of the whole war,” Colin Kahl, a senior Pentagon official, later said of the episode.
Barack Obama
Ahead of Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Biden blamed Obama for not stopping Putin’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.
“They f–ked up in 2014,” Biden told a friend, according to Woodward. “That’s why we are here. We f–ked it up. Barack never took Putin seriously.”
Biden added, “We did nothing. We gave Putin a license to continue!” Biden was angry: “Well, I’m revoking his f–-ing license!”
Donald Trump
“War” also reveals how then-President Donald Trump sent Putin a shipment of Covid-19 testing equipment for his personal use during the height of the pandemic.
“Please don’t tell anybody you sent these to me,” Putin said to Trump, according to Woodward.
When Trump replied he didn’t care, Putin told him: “I don’t want you to tell anybody because people will get mad at you, not me. They don’t care about me.”
Woodward writes that Trump has stayed in touch with Putin after leaving office and details a moment at Trump’s Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, where Trump allegedly told a senior aide to leave the room so “he could have what he said was a private phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.”
“According to Trump’s aide, there have been multiple phone calls between Trump and Putin, maybe as many as seven in the period since Trump left the White House in 2021,” Woodward writes, although Trump aide Jason Miller denies this in the book.
Saudi crown prince Prince Mohammed bin Salman
After October 7, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken made a whirlwind trip through the Middle East, trying to negotiate humanitarian assistance for Gaza — only for Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to keep him up all night waiting for a meeting.
Woodward quotes Blinken saying, “MBS was nothing more than a spoiled child.”
The book also recounts a meeting that Lindsay Graham had with the crown prince in March.
“Hey, let’s call Trump,” Graham said to MBS while visiting with the Saudi leader in March.
Woodward writes that bin Salman had an aide bring over a bag with about 50 burner phones, pulling out one labeled “TRUMP 45.” Among the others in the bag, Woodward writes, was a burner labeled “JAKE SULLIVAN” — Biden’s National Security Advisor.
The 2024 election
Woodward writes how Trump’s decision to run for president again came after conversations with his golfing buddy, Sen. Lindsey Graham.
“Going to Mar-a-Lago is a little bit like going to North Korea,” Graham said. “Everybody stands up and claps every time Trump comes in.”
Meanwhile, the book claims, it was Blinken who broached the subject of Biden dropping out of the race during a private lunch on July 4.
“I don’t want to see your legacy jeopardized. Anyone who is written about gets one sentence. That’s the legacy,” Blinken reportedly said. “If this decision leads you to staying in and winning reelection, great. If it leads to you staying in and losing reelection, that’s the sentence.”
Blinken asked Biden: “Can you see yourself doing it for another four years? You’ve got to answer that question.”
“War” also offers a glimpse into Harris’ private dealings with Biden as his VP. Woodward writes about her being concerned over Biden’s isolation.
“I’m calling to ask you — to really beg you, actually — could you please talk to the president more than you talk to him?” Harris reportedly said on a call to one of Biden’s closest friends.
The friend told Harris, the books says that the president mainly called them to “swear freely about ‘what a f–king a–hole Joe Manchin is.’”
