PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: A cabal of close and influential aides worked to hide Joe Biden’s cognitive and physical decline from the press and others in the Democratic government, including senior cabinet officials.
👥 Who’s Involved: President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden, longtime aides Mike Donilon, Steve Ricchetti, Bruce Reed, Ron Klain, Anthony Bernal, and Annie Tomasini.
📍 Where & When: The allegations that aides covered up Biden’s cognitive and physical decline surfaced in July 2024 but have drawn increasing media attention with the publication of Original Sin on May 20, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “When you’re voting for president, you’re voting for the aides around him,” a Biden staffer reportedly told Original Sin author Alex Thompson.
⚠️ Impact: Claims raise questions about transparency, Biden’s fitness for office, and the Biden government’s handling of national security and policy issues.
IN FULL:
Evidence continues to mount that a covert operation within the Biden government, comprised of a tight-knit group of aides, worked to obscure President Joe Biden’s mental decline while effectively running the White House. Author and journalist Alex Thompson describes the group as a “politburo” of longtime aides Mike Donilon, Steve Ricchetti, Bruce Reed, Ron Klain, Anthony Bernal, and Annie Tomasini. Last summer, The National Pulse reported that Bernal, Tomasini, and aide Ashley Williams served as intermediaries between Joe and Jill Biden and senior White House officials, effectively shielding the octogenarian Democrat from his own cabinet.
Thompson, the co-author of Original Sin, states concerns about Biden’s capacity to endure a reelection campaign or another term were raised by administration insiders as early as April 2023. Notably, even Biden’s doctor, Kevin O’Connor, who repeatedly told the American public that Biden’s health was fine, privately told White House aides that if the president suffered a fall in 2023 or 2024, he would likely need to be confined to a wheelchair and face an arduous recovery.
The protective environment around Biden became so fervent that at least one aide remarked that Biden “just had to win, and then he could disappear for four years,” with aides taking over day-to-day responsibilities. “When you’re voting for president, you’re voting for the aides around him,” the staffer allegedly stated. Even more concerning, at least two cabinet members are alleged to have expressed doubts regarding Biden’s cognitive state and ability to handle critical national security situations, such as a potential “2:00 AM crisis call.”
In January, The National Pulse reported that presidential historian Douglas Brinkley acknowledged that Biden was effectively unable to function as Commander-in-Chief during his final years in office. Like Thompson and reports last summer, Brinkley states that a cadre of key White House aides both hid Biden’s infirmities and effectively ran the country in his stead. Brinkley likened the situation to former President Woodrow Wilson, who suffered a stroke largely hidden from the American public. Following the stroke, his wife, Edith Wilson, essentially ran the country.
As allegations mounted in recent weeks regarding the cover-up of Biden’s mental and physical decline, the Biden family announced last week that Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. Typically slow-developing, prostate cancer is often caught in its early stages through PSA tests and routine prostate exams, though Biden’s medical records are unclear if he received either while serving as president.
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