Joe Biden’s faltering memory, laid bare in audio recordings, raises sobering questions about his leadership capacity. Obtained by Axios, these tapes from October 2023 interviews with special counsel Robert Hur capture the former president grasping for basic facts, from his son’s death to classified documents stashed in his desk. For a nation seeking clarity, this is a troubling listen.
According to Axios, in two grueling three-hour sessions, Biden struggled to recall pivotal moments, like Beau’s 2015 death or his vice-presidential exit, while the White House’s grandfather clock ticked ominously. Audio reveals a man adrift, muttering, slurring, and pausing at length, especially when probed about sensitive documents. It’s a stark contrast to the “sharp” leader Democrats insisted he was.
Conducted in the White House’s Map Room on October 8 and 9, 2023, these interviews followed Hamas’ attack on Israel, catching Biden at a low ebb. On day one, he took over two hours to explain how classified files ended up in his cabinets, his responses sluggish and vague. By day two, he perked up, cracking jokes but still fumbling words like “fax machine.”
Biden’s memory lapses weren’t trivial—he forgot when Trump was elected and why he kept classified papers. “I guess I wanted to hang onto it just for posterity’s sake,” he admitted about an Afghanistan document, only for his attorney Bob Bauer to swoop in, urging him not to speculate. Such interventions highlight a team scrambling to shield a faltering principal.
The White House blocked these recordings’ release in 2023, dismissing them as “law enforcement materials” ripe for Republican distortion. Yet, their secrecy only fueled skepticism, especially after Hur’s February 2024 report described Biden as a “sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.” That portrayal, now audible, stings with unfiltered truth.
Hur opted not to prosecute Biden for mishandling classified documents, citing his likability and cooperation, unlike Trump’s defiance in a similar case. MAGA Inc. pounced, arguing that if Biden’s too frail for trial, he’s unfit for the presidency. The audio, with its halting cadence, lends their critique unsettling weight.
Biden’s attorneys, led by Bauer, played cleanup, correcting dates and halting speculative answers. When prosecutor Marc Krickbaum pressed Biden on a 2017 recording where he mentioned finding “classified stuff downstairs,” Bauer sharply intervened: “You answer that you don’t know.” It’s a moment that reeks of stage-managing a vulnerable client.
“I just found all the classified stuff downstairs,” Biden had told his ghostwriter in 2017, a casual admission now under scrutiny. Krickbaum’s probing—“What did you mean?”—met Biden’s vague “I don’t remember,” a refrain that echoes through the tapes. For a former president, such gaps in recall are more than personal—they’re a policy liability.
White House aides, like counsel Ed Siskel, occasionally fed Biden words or dates when he floundered. Yet, Biden veered into tangents—Obama’s 2016 election musings, his Corvette, even Mongolian archery—while struggling with core questions. These asides, though charming, underscore a mind untethered from the task at hand.
Democrats, led by Kamala Harris, slammed Hur’s report as “politically motivated” and “gratuitous,” insisting Biden’s sharpness was misrepresented. “The transcripts were released more than a year ago. The audio does nothing but confirm what is already public,” Biden’s spokesperson Kelly Scully claimed. But the tapes’ raw emotion—Biden’s voice cracking over Beau—paints a more human, yet frail, picture.
“Am I making any sense to you?” Biden asked while discussing document classification, a plea that cuts through the spin. The audio captures not just confusion but a man wrestling with grief and age, his book "Promise Me, Dad" a painful touchstone. Empathy abounds, but leadership demands more than sympathy.
Hur’s report, released February 8, 2024, noted jurors might hesitate to convict an elderly, cooperative Biden—a leniency Trump never got. “It would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict him,” Hur wrote, citing Biden’s mental state. Critics argue this double standard exposes a justice system bending to likability over law.
The tapes surfaced as a new book, "Original Sin" by Alex Thompson and Jake Tapper, set for release, promises to dissect Biden’s decline. Their timing amplifies concerns that Biden’s team obscured his struggles during his 2024 campaign at age 81. Hiding such truths, it seems, only deepens public distrust.
Biden’s occasional vigor—joking, engaging—offers glimpses of the old Joe, but the lapses dominate. When he needed Bauer to clarify that he didn’t recall keeping classified memos post-vice presidency, it felt less like legal caution and more like a lifeline. Governing requires precision, not approximations. These recordings don’t just expose Biden’s frailties; they challenge the narrative of a robust leader peddled by his allies. For conservatives, it’s a rallying cry: accountability can’t wait for sympathy. As the clock ticks—literally and figuratively—America deserves leaders who can keep up.
