Outgoing US President Joe Biden’s entourage has covered up the extent of his mental decline since he entered office in 2021, the Wall Street Journal reported in its bombshell investigation.
The newspaper cited numerous unnamed Democratic lawmakers, donors, and presidential aides as saying that despite the fact that all US presidents have gatekeepers, the walls around Biden "were higher and the controls greater."
"There were limits over who Biden spoke with, limits on what they said to him, and limits around the sources of information he consumed," the sources argued. "They body him to such a high degree," one insider claimed, adding that there has been more "hand-holding" as compared to other presidents.
Biden’s "tightknit inner circle of advisers" also worked out a strategy to prevent POTUS from making gaffes or missteps that could tarnish his image, according to the sources.
The advisers did their best to keep Biden’s meeting short as his public interactions became more scripted. The strategy, however, collapsed during Biden’s June 27 debate with Donald Trump, which saw the former being unable to complete his thoughts.
US media reported at the time that the disastrous debate became an eye-opener and a turning point in discussions of Biden’s mental state and his suitability to serve as the next president. The 82-year-old finally dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Kamala Harris as his replacement in late July.