Debate Reflections from CNN’s Jake Tapper

On Tuesday, Jake Tapper shared some candid thoughts with Megyn Kelly on SiriusXM. He mentioned that during a debate involving former President Joe Biden, he felt the urge to express his shock by writing “holy smoke” to his team. Instead, he humorously suggested he considered something stronger, like “holy sex.”

Tapper, together with Axios’ Alex Thompson, launched their book titled “Original Singh,” which examines Biden’s presidency and raises questions about his mental fitness as the 2024 election approaches.

During the discussion, Tapper explained, “We have an iPad that you can write on, and honestly, I recommend it. It’s great for jotting down thoughts.” He reflected on an incident during the debate, saying, “I was thinking ‘holy intercourse.’ It was shocking, but I kept it clean.” He also pointed out, “…Dana [Bash] mentioned that he just lost the election.”

Concerns about Biden’s mental acuity have been voiced by Republicans since he assumed office in January 2021, but those claims were quickly countered by Democrats and White House staff, who circulated videos showing Biden making verbal missteps.

Kelly noted, “You saw him right away, and you wrote in the book that something quite concerning occurred.”

Tapper responded, “Honestly, I didn’t notice initially. First of all, Jill helped him off the stage; it’s a single step. Perhaps the strange lighting was a bit distracting. But there was a moment when he was likely just lost in thought.”

As Biden’s 2024 campaign progressed, former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dismissed the footage showing Biden’s incident as “cheap fakes.”

During the debate with Trump, Biden seemed to struggle to finish his argument and appeared to freeze at one point, prompting Tapper to step in. “He said something like, ‘Sorry – sorry about my cold.’ He was trying to point out how much Trump was lying but ended up saying, ‘I’m going to see what the commentators have to say,'” Tapper recalled.

Tapper shared a personal note too, “I’m 56, and I’ve reached that stage where sleep is a cherished commodity. As a kid, you despise it, but as an adult, it’s just not enough. Even at the start of this debate, I thought, ‘Is this really beginning at 9? This feels so slow.’ Then Biden seemed to question, ‘Why was it wrong to begin at 9 AM?’

Following the debate, voices from within the Democratic party and analysts who had once supported Biden began urging him to step back from the race. There were also reports of donors holding back financial support. Ultimately, Biden announced his withdrawal from the election on July 21, 2024.