New book exposes Biden's exhaustion and confusion before Trump debate

A forthcoming book reveals that former White House chief of staff Ron Klain described former President Joe Biden as "fatigued, befuddled, and disengaged" ahead of his June debate with President Donald Trump. The book, "Uncharted: How Trump Beat Biden, Harris, and the Odds in the Wildest Campaign in History," written by Chris Whipple, is set for release this month.

According to an excerpt published by The Guardian, Klain was alarmed during an initial meeting with Biden at Aspen Lodge, the presidential retreat. "He’d never seen him so exhausted and out of it," Whipple wrote. "Biden was unaware of what was happening in his own campaign. Halfway through the session, the president excused himself and went off to sit by the pool."

The book details concerns among Biden’s closest aides, with Whipple arguing that they were in a "fog of delusion and denial." In an interview with Politico, Whipple stated, "I have fresh reporting on an hour-by-hour, day-by-day basis of Biden’s final days, and obviously his decline is a major part of the story. I happen to think that to call it a ‘cover-up’ is simplistic. I think it was stranger and way more troubling than that. Biden’s inner circle, his closest advisers, many of them were in a fog of delusion and denial. They believed what they wanted to believe."

Biden’s preparation for the debate included two mock sessions. However, Whipple’s book claims the first practice debate, intended to last 90 minutes, was cut short after 45 minutes. "The president’s voice was shot and so was his grasp of the subject. All he really could talk about was his infrastructure plan and how he was rebuilding America and 16 million jobs. He had nothing to say about his agenda for a second term," the excerpt states.

Klain, a longtime ally of Biden, played a key role in helping him prepare for the debate, but concerns mounted as Biden reportedly struggled during the second mock debate. "25 minutes into the second mock debate, the president was done for the day. ‘I’m just too tired to continue and I’m afraid of losing my voice here and I feel bad,’" the book quotes Klain as saying. "‘I just need some sleep. I’ll be fine tomorrow.’ He went off to bed."

Biden’s team has not yet responded to requests for comment on the claims made in Whipple’s book.

The book is one of several set to be published this year chronicling the 2024 campaign, one of the most tumultuous elections in US history. Other books, such as those by The Hill’s Amie Parnes and NBC News’ Jonathan Allen, are expected to provide additional insight into the former president’s departure from the race.

Allen’s reporting suggests that former President Barack Obama was not in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris replacing Biden on the ticket, allegedly working behind the scenes to block her efforts. Meanwhile, CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson are preparing to release their own book in May, titled "Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again."

The revelations in Whipple’s book add to ongoing scrutiny over Biden’s fitness for office, with his performance in the 2024 campaign becoming a central point of discussion among political analysts and voters alike.