Biden’s aides discussed wheelchair use if he was re-elected, new book claims

Aides to then-President Joe Biden discussed the use of a wheelchair if he was re-elected, a new book on his doomed re-election bid claims.

The private discussions took place amid Biden’s physical deterioration in 2023 and 2024, Jake Tapper of CNN and Alex Thompson of Axios write in Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.

The conversations addressed the degeneration of his spine amid his declining health as he worked to get a second term at the age of 81.

The discussions also suggest that the Biden White House was determined to hide the extent of his condition during the re-election fight against President Donald Trump before Biden dropped out of the race following his disastrous debate performance in late June.

The book by Tapper and Thompson is based on more than 200 interviews, primarily with Democratic insiders, almost all of which occurred after the 2024 election.

“Biden's physical deterioration — most apparent in his halting walk — had become so severe that there were internal discussions about putting the president in a wheelchair, but they couldn't do so until after the election,” Tapper and Thompson write.

Aides to the then-president thought it wasn’t politically viable to have Biden in a wheelchair during the campaign.

Because of Biden’s age, his doctor, Kevin O’Connor, “privately said that if he had another bad fall, a wheelchair might be necessary for what could be a difficult recovery.”

Aides to the president grew increasingly concerned about Biden having another fall after he tripped over a sandbag in June 2023 during an event at the Air Force Academy. More precautions were taken to avoid another fall before the 2024 election in November.

They worked to organise shorter walking paths and demanded the use of handrails as he got up on stages during appearances. Biden aides also made sure he wore sneakers more often, changed his briefings ahead of events to make sure he was aware of every step he was to take, and put in place more extensive guidance for his movements.

O’Connor had expressed concerns for quite some time about the effects of the presidency on Biden’s health, arguing with his political officials that he needed more rest time. The doctor, at times, joked that his staff was trying to kill Biden, while the physician was trying to keep the president alive.

Biden’s aides told reporters through 2024 that the president’s halting walk was partly due to a foot fracture from November 2020 and then refusing to wear his walking boot consistently, however, that went against what O’Connor had said publicly. Biden wore a walking boot for 10 weeks in late 2020 and early 2021, after which O’Connor noted that both minor fractures in his foot had “completely healed.”

“This injury has healed as expected,” O’Connor said at the time.

In public health summaries, O’Connor said Biden experienced “mild post-­fracture foot arthritis.” However, he put more emphasis on Biden’s "significant spinal arthritis" to explain why Biden’s gait had changed.

Tapper and Thompson write that Biden, his family, and top administration officials went ahead with the re-election campaign in the face of signs of physical and mental decline during his time in office.

But following Biden’s debate performance against Trump in June last year, Democratic leaders started pushing for his removal from the top of the ticket. It took three weeks, but Biden eventually dropped out of the race and endorsed then-Vice President Kamala Harris, effectively ending the prospect of an open primary.

A spokesperson for Biden told Axios that the former president’s “medical exam made clear that he had a stiffened gait caused, in part, by wear and tear to his spine — but that no special treatment was necessary and that it had not worsened.”

“He was transparent about this, and it was far from 'severe,’” the spokesperson added. “Yes, there were physical changes as he got older, but evidence of aging is not evidence of mental incapacity."

“And so far, we are still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline,” the spokesperson argued. “In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president."

This comes as a “small nodule” was located in Biden's prostate during a regular medical exam. Biden spent last Friday at a Philadelphia hospital after the nodule was found and needed “further evaluation,” a spokesperson told The New York Times. It’s common for men in their 80s to experience issues with their prostate.

Biden, 82, left office as the oldest president to ever serve in the role; however, Trump is the oldest person ever elected to the office.

Concerns about his health and age followed Biden through his presidency, eventually prompting his departure from his re-election campaign.

Biden was declared “fit to serve” by his doctor in February last year following a physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

The former president appeared on The View last week, rejecting reports that he declined during his last year as president.

“They are wrong,” said Biden. “There’s nothing to sustain that.”