Tyler Pager

Tyler, what was your reaction? Yeah, this is something that my colleague, Sean McCreesh, and I had actually been tracking a little bit because about a week ago, Biden was in a Philly area hospital. And we learned that that was because there was a small nodule found on his prostate. We had very few details beyond that.

But because of that, I had been following up almost every day with the Biden folks to get a better sense of exactly what the diagnosis might be from that discovery. But I don't think any of us expected it to be this severe in nature.

But because of that, I had been following up almost every day with the Biden folks to get a better sense of exactly what the diagnosis might be from that discovery. But I don't think any of us expected it to be this severe in nature.

When I saw this on Sunday afternoon, it felt like another piece of terrible news for Joe Biden. It's a very serious diagnosis. And I think there was an enormous outpouring of sympathy for him to be as sick as they say he is at this point in his life.

When I saw this on Sunday afternoon, it felt like another piece of terrible news for Joe Biden. It's a very serious diagnosis. And I think there was an enormous outpouring of sympathy for him to be as sick as they say he is at this point in his life.

At the same time, it's hard to divorce that from the weakened change that preceded it, which was just an unending string of bad news for the former president.

At the same time, it's hard to divorce that from the weakened change that preceded it, which was just an unending string of bad news for the former president.

Yeah, I mean, you can't separate this from the reality that the party –

Yeah, I mean, you can't separate this from the reality that the party –

has been having a conversation about Biden's health and what people knew about his health and what some of the people closest to him, both his aides and other elected officials who were close allies, kind of what they knew about how capable he was of performing the duties of the presidency and what the gap might have been between that reality and what people said to the public.

has been having a conversation about Biden's health and what people knew about his health and what some of the people closest to him, both his aides and other elected officials who were close allies, kind of what they knew about how capable he was of performing the duties of the presidency and what the gap might have been between that reality and what people said to the public.

And so this is getting thrown on top of that conversation, almost like pouring gasoline on a fire. People still feel deep empathy for him and feel sad that he is going through this. But I think it's also fits in with the anger that a lot of Democrats have at former President Biden and the people closest to him who protected and abetted him throughout this process.

And so this is getting thrown on top of that conversation, almost like pouring gasoline on a fire. People still feel deep empathy for him and feel sad that he is going through this. But I think it's also fits in with the anger that a lot of Democrats have at former President Biden and the people closest to him who protected and abetted him throughout this process.

Yeah, there's a whole host of different types of revelations that fall into various buckets. One, you know, Michael, as you mentioned from the book that I co-wrote with former colleagues at The Washington Post, revealed that some of Biden's closest aides debated before his final physical as president whether they should have him submit for a cognitive test as part of his physical test.

Yeah, there's a whole host of different types of revelations that fall into various buckets. One, you know, Michael, as you mentioned from the book that I co-wrote with former colleagues at The Washington Post, revealed that some of Biden's closest aides debated before his final physical as president whether they should have him submit for a cognitive test as part of his physical test.

They were adamant that he would not fail the cognitive test, but thought that maybe it would help prove to the American people that he was fit to run for office. Ultimately, they decided not to do so in part because they worried it would raise more questions, particularly around why he would take a cognitive test if they didn't think there were any problems there.

They were adamant that he would not fail the cognitive test, but thought that maybe it would help prove to the American people that he was fit to run for office. Ultimately, they decided not to do so in part because they worried it would raise more questions, particularly around why he would take a cognitive test if they didn't think there were any problems there.

Some of the other revelations relate to his memory and his ability to interact with other people, particularly as it relates to faces and names. One of the books recounts a scene at the infamous fundraiser in California, in part hosted by George Clooney, in which the famous actor relates that the president did not recognize him and had to be prompted by an aide.

Some of the other revelations relate to his memory and his ability to interact with other people, particularly as it relates to faces and names. One of the books recounts a scene at the infamous fundraiser in California, in part hosted by George Clooney, in which the famous actor relates that the president did not recognize him and had to be prompted by an aide.

One of the most recognizable human beings in the world. Absolutely. Who has a longstanding relationship with the president that dates back decades. George Clooney is very active in Democratic politics and someone that had a personal relationship with Joe Biden.