Biden’s Decline ‘Cover-Up’ Called Out at White House Correspondents’ Dinner

Axios reporter Alex Thompson called out media outlets’ “cover-up” of former President Joe Biden‘s cognitive decline during an acceptance speech at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday night.

In his speech, Thompson stressed the importance of reporting, saying the failure to properly address the issue has led some people to lose faith in the media, adding that “acknowledging errors builds trust, and being defensive about them further erodes it.”

Newsweek has reached out to Creative Artists Agency’s press team on behalf of Biden for comment via email on Sunday.

Why It Matters

During the 2024 presidential election, the White House and leading Democrats repeatedly insisted that Biden was sharp, clear-headed and capable of fulfilling all presidential duties. In July, Biden dismissed concerns about his cognitive abilities, telling NBC News’ Lester Holt “my mental acuity has been pretty damn good.”

However, a disastrous debate performance in June against then-Republican nominee Donald Trump revealed Biden’s declining mental acuity, and several weeks later Biden ultimately bowed out of the race, leaving Democrats with just over 100 days before the election to find a new nominee and build a winning campaign. Then-Vice President Kamala Harris ultimately took the helm; however she lost to Trump in the Electoral College and the popular vote.

A series of books and tell-alls about Biden’s decline have been released or are forthcoming, including Chris Whipple’s latest book, which argues that Biden’s top advisers were in a “fog of delusion and denial” about his ability to serve another term. Thompson is also co-authoring a book with CNN anchor Jake Tapper about the alleged cover-up efforts, set to be released next month.

The Trump administration has had a tense relationship with the press over the past three months, taking a stricter approach to media relations than its predecessors, including shake-ups affecting the press pool and access to the White House and Pentagon, and a lawsuit from the Associated Press over terminology related to the Gulf of Mexico after Trump renamed it the Gulf of America. The changes mark a shift in power from the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) to the White House, giving the administration control over the press pool.

What To Know

In his acceptance speech of the Aldo Beckman Award for Overall Excellence in White House coverage Saturday night, Thompson reiterated the importance of media at a time when faith in journalism is low.

“I believe reporting and the White House Correspondents’ Association is as necessary as ever,” the journalist said at the podium, later adding that “I believe our mission is vital in a world where people are struggling to figure out what is true and people with power are not telling the truth.”

He turned to the 2024 presidential election and said: “President Biden’s decline, and its cover-up by the people around him is a reminder that every White House regardless of party is capable of deception.”

He continued: “Being truth tellers also means telling the truth about ourselves. We, myself included, missed a lot of this story. And some people trust us less because of it. We bear some responsible for faith in the media at such lows.”

Trust in the media has fallen to a five-decade low, according to Gallup, which has tracked Americans’ views on the news media since the 1970s. Gallup reported in February that 36 percent of Americans have no trust at all in the media, while 31 percent trust it and 33 percent say they do not have much faith in it.

Thompson added on Saturday: “I say this because acknowledging errors builds trust, and being defensive about them further erodes it.”

What People Are Saying

Fox News’ official X, formerly Twitter, account shared a clip of Thompson’s speech and wrote on Sunday: “‘We missed it.’ Liberal media left roasting themselves — and @axios reporter @AlexThomp admits he’s part of the Biden decline cover-up they couldn’t spin.”

In response, Alex Thompson reshared the post and wrote: “Stupid and bad-faith tweet.”

CNN anchor Jake Tapper said in a statement announcing his new book: “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.”

Penguin Press, the publisher of Tapper’s and Thompson’s upcoming book, said in a press release: “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.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters in April: “I can tell you there was certainly a lack of transparency from the former president, from the entire former administration. And frankly, a lot of people in this room, when it came to the health in the competence of the former President of the United States, Joe Biden — there was one of the greatest cover-ups and, frankly, political scandals this nation has ever seen. It’s been unraveled in some recent books that are being written by journalists who engaged in that cover-up in scandal, which is quite ironic.”

Then-President Joe Biden said during a PBS interview on July 11: “I’m tested every single day about my neurological capacities in the decisions I make every day.”

Then-Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas under Biden said on NBC’s Meet the Press in February 2024: “The most difficult part about a meeting with President Biden is preparing for it because he is sharp, intensely probing, and detail-oriented, and focused.”

What Happens Next

Thompson and Tapper’s book titled Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, is set to be released on May 20.