As lawmakers continue their investigation into what former President Joe Biden’s inner circle knew about his alleged cognitive decline, one insider who’s written about the issue says he continues to be stunned by the "fog of denial" that surrounded the aging president.
"They [just] convinced themselves, in effect, they believed what they wanted to believe instead of their lying eyes, even during the debate when everything went south," said Chris Whipple, author of the book "Uncharted," which chronicled the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election.
Whipple interviewed several members of Biden’s inner circle in the aftermath of his widely criticized debate performance, which ultimately led to the suspension of his re-election campaign.
Former chief of staff Ron Klain, who reportedly told House lawmakers this week that Biden had grown "more forgetful" in office, was among sources who opened up for Whipple's book.
"Despite that devastating debate, which was lights out, game over, everybody knew it, Klain was still all in on Joe Biden's nomination and re-election and somehow thought he could beat Trump," Whipple told "America's Newsroom" Friday.
"He’s been in the doghouse with Joe Biden and his inner circle ever since he was devastatingly candid to me about Joe Biden's condition in that pre-debate prep at Camp David."
House Republicans have launched a probe into the former president’s cognitive health and have called on former Biden administration officials to testify about what they witnessed. Most of those called have pleaded the Fifth and refused to answer lawmakers' questions, including the former president’s physician.
SENATE REPUBLICANS PLAN HEARING ON BIDEN'S ALLEGED COGNITIVE DECLINE COVER-UP
'ORIGINAL SIN' CO-AUTHOR EXPOSES 'FRANTIC EFFORTS' TO HIDE BIDEN'S COGNITIVE DECLINE
But based on his conversations, Whipple does not believe there was a secretive scheme to control the presidency.
"The notion that this was somehow, you know, Biden’s last year was ‘Weekend at Bernie’s’ and that there he was non compos mentis and there was a cabal running the country with an autopen is just silly," he said.
"The notion that they're [Republicans are] going to be able to prove that there was this dastardly cover-up on the part of Biden's inner circle is just crazy to me. I think the answer is that this thing goes nowhere."