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Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The Clare Byrne Show on Newstalk. With Aviva Insurance.
Jill Biden has released her memoir in which she recalls the immense pressure that Joe Biden faced in the aftermath of his disastrous 2024 presidential debate performance. And while some have welcomed the book, others say it has done the Biden family and the Democratic Party more harm than good. Well, journalist Hillary McGahn has just finished this book and she joins me now. Hello, Hillary.
Good morning, Clare. How are you? I'm good, but I was really surprised to read quotes from some of those who were really at the heart of the Biden administration at the time saying, why do this now?
Chapter 2: What key events does Jill Biden recall in her memoir?
Why say these things now? And they were particularly critical of Jill when she says in the book that she felt that Joe maybe had had a stroke on the stage. Take us through some of the reaction, first of all, and then we'll talk about what you thought of it.
Yes, well, listen, it's the most talked about book in the US this week, without a doubt. I expect it to be on all the bestsellers next week. And I have to say, I listened to the book in one day. It's a very easy listen and it's fascinating. It's also, I always find it really interesting to hear from the perspective of somebody that was in the White House at the time.
There's been so many books covered about that last presidential election. This is the first time we're hearing directly from someone the former first lady, Jill Biden, on what she thought.
Chapter 3: How has the memoir been received by critics and supporters?
It's been reported about and speculated about many times how she felt at the time. And you're right, this has opened old wounds amongst a lot of Democrats. And she writes in the book that she thought during that infamous June 2024 debate that her husband, President Biden, was having a medical event.
She later said in an interview that she thought it was specifically that he might have been having a stroke. And a lot of Democrats are now saying, well, why is there such a discrepancy between what you're saying now that you felt at the time and how the reaction was? And I'm not just talking about in the immediate aftermath of the debate. You're not going to.
And I can understand and I can appreciate as a wife, you're not going to get out there publicly and say it was a bad night. However, we do have to remember that there was nearly a month that went by of them hanging on and saying, I'm staying in the race. I'm going to run. I can do a second term in office. before he ultimately, after a lot of pressure from Democrats, stepped out of the race.
And so there's a lot of anger of saying, you know, you told us everything was fine and it clearly wasn't.
Chapter 4: What surprising quotes did Jill Biden include about Joe's debate performance?
Yeah. And it makes no sense to say now that she thought maybe he'd had a medical emergency or a stroke because straight after the debate, didn't he go and do a photo shoot at a Waffle House? And then there was a rally after that. Now, if you thought your husband had had a stroke, you'd be getting medical help for him immediately.
So it leaves you questioning whether she's a reliable witness to all of this.
Look, I think the overall theme, what I came away from the book here is thinking the overall theme here is a marriage of a lot of love, but I think a lot of naivety as well. And they seem to prioritize, the Biden family seems to be very tight knit, but they seem to prioritize loyalty over everything else.
And, you know, Jill Biden does do some retrospective thinking and she, you know, she does look and say, was this a case that people were scared to tell us the truth? Was I actually able to objectively look and be clear in my thoughts about my husband's ability or his aging? She talks a lot about how he had, you know, declined physically, but not mentally. And she's very clear in saying that.
I think what was really interesting is that in the interview, and this isn't in the book, but in the interview, the first interview she did about this book, she says about the debate, she says, look, that was the first time I had seen him like that. And I haven't seen him like that since. And I think that caught a lot of people by surprise. And people were saying, do you really feel that way?
Because over here in the US, Claire, a lot of Democrats feel that they were gaslit in that last election and the run up to President Biden dropping out of the race.
Because they were saying, you know, we've seen clips like this where he looks confused and we can't just, I know what the polarized society over here is so political, but we can't just constantly say, oh, Fox News edited a clip in a misleading way. And so a lot of Democrats that I've spoken to say, stop gaslighting us. And I think that this in one way
I can appreciate her reasoning for wanting to write a book, but it does definitely reopen old wounds.
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Chapter 5: What does the guest think about the reactions to Jill Biden's statements?
And it raises a lot of questions about the honesty Democrats had in their approach towards voters at such a critical time.
Well, reopening old wounds is the problem that a lot of Democrats now have this week with this. You know, they're saying, why are you relitigating this when we're in the run up to the midterms? What is the point? And she is ultimately trying to sell books and obviously doing that very successfully.
But were you surprised at the level of vitriol coming from within the Democrats towards Jill Biden for doing these interviews now, for releasing this book now?
I wasn't surprised, but I will say that it seems to fall, it's not down party lines. Actually, when you look at some of the Democrats that are speaking out the most heavily, they tend to be lawmakers from swing states. And so a lot of this actually, to understand the reactions of politicians, you kind of have to understand where in the country they're coming from.
So it tends to be almost the case that if you're a Democrat in a blue state, that's always one Democrat, you're not worried about your future in these upcoming midterms. They kind of haven't been as critical, whereas it tends to be more where somebody's seat is up for grabs. They're saying, why are we relitigating this?
At the same time, I will play devil's advocate here and say there have been so many books written, including a book by former Vice President Kamala Harris. talking about this presidential election. And I can understand and appreciate that for a historical record, the former First Lady wants to get her words out there. I wouldn't be surprised if President Biden also released a book.
And when it comes to the timing, it's one of those things where I don't think the book would have been written by last year. Yes, of course, we're now in a midterm year, but we are five months away. Politics is moving so fast here in the US at the moment. And if it was post midterms, the same critics will come out and say, why are you doing this ahead of another presidential election?
So I can appreciate the delicacy here. how delicate it is when it comes to the timing.
Yeah, and it can be sliced any which way, of course, as with all of these things, particularly American politics. But what was it about the book that left you listening to it in one day? What was so attractive to you when you started it?
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