Two prominent political journalists wrote a book that they say will chart the decline of former President Joe Biden, the cover-up, and why he decided to run for president again.
“Original Sin,” written by Axios’ Alex Thompson and CNN’s Jake Tapper, is set to release on May 20.
“In Greek tragedy, the protagonist’s effort to avoid his fate is what seals his fate,” said Penguin Random House’s book announcement. “In 2024, American politics became a Greek tragedy.”
About Biden’s decision to run for president again in 2024, the publisher wrote, “He, his family, and his senior aides were so convinced that only he could beat Trump again, they lied to themselves, allies, and the public about his condition and limitations.”
A new book titled “Original Sin” by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson is pictured in a screenshot from the book’s website Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. | Sites.prh.com/originalsin/
What’s the book about?
The presidential debate last year in June between Biden and President Donald Trump, moderated by Tapper and Dana Bash, exposed Biden’s apparent decline, which “was shocking and upsetting.”
“What the world saw at Joe Biden’s one and only debate was not an anomaly,” Tapper and Thompson write in the book. “It was the natural result of an eighty-one-year-old man whose faculties had been diminishing for years.”
The authors of the book say they will tell “the full, unsettling truth” for the first time, including conversations with key players, like White House staffers, congressional lawmakers, members of the Cabinet, governors and Hollywood donors, who knew about the problems inside the White House.
“What you will learn makes President Biden’s decision to run for reelection seem shockingly narcissistic, self-delusional, and reckless — a desperate bet that went bust — and part of a larger act of extended public deception that has few precedents,” according to the publisher.
The authors say they will explain why Biden backtracked from earlier statements that he would only serve one term, and how the White House responded when people expressed concerns about the former president’s health. The “Original Sin” argues these tactics directly contributed to Trump’s win in the 2024 presidential election.
Tapper explained on CNN the inspiration behind his new book.
Jake Tapper speaks before the first of two Democratic presidential primary debates hosted by CNN Tuesday, July 30, 2019, in the Fox Theatre in Detroit. | Paul Sancya
“Toni Morrison once said ‘If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.’ That’s what inspired this book: we wanted to know more about what we all just lived through. More than 200 interviews later, Alex and I have a much better idea. And soon you all will too.”
Conservatives react to book about Biden
While conservatives say they are happy the cover-up is coming to light, several prominent conservatives also called out the two authors for what they say is hypocrisy.
Jim Verdi, a producer on “The Dan Bongino Show,” said in response to Thompson’s announcement post on X, “You’re proud of the coverup you participated in and are now gaslighting to pretend you weren’t part of it? You’re why America holds the media in such low regard.”
Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins, a Republican, spoke about how early calls about Biden’s fitness for office were treated.
“When you call out Joe Biden’s decline for three years and say that he should step aside, you get called a conspiracy theorist,” said Collins on X. “When a CNN reporter finally catches up with reality, they get to sell books and pretend like it never happened.”
Following the presidential debate, Tapper acknowledged the issue of Biden’s age and deteriorating health.
“In reality, 72% of voters say that they believe President Biden is too old. … Voters have been saying this for quite a long time,” he said on his CNN show on July 8, 2024. “The reality is that the Democratic elites are mostly late to acknowledge these age ability issues compared to the rest of the public.” He added that Democratic officials privately expressed their worries to him and pushed for Biden to directly address the concerns by releasing his medical reports.
