The Kicker

What did we know and when? Alex Thompson on investigating Biden’s mental decline

July 3, 2024
Credit: AP / Art by Katie Kosma

Alex Thompson, a national political correspondent for Axios, first reported that President Biden had started wearing special sneakers, in part to reduce the risk of tripping, last fall.

But until the debate last week, he was still one of a small handful of reporters who was aggressively pursuing direct evidence that Biden’s age—regular fodder for political talk shows—was actually having an impact.

He joins The Kicker to talk about what it’s like to do that kind of journalism, how the White House pushed back, and why so many people had a hard time accepting what was happening in front of their eyes.

Read Alex’s report from last fall about concerns inside the White House about Biden losing his footing.

And his coverage after the debate, when he revealed why the White House limited Biden’s public engagements before 10am and after 4pm.

The Wall Street Journal’s monthslong investigation into signs of Biden’s mental decline, from early June, is here.


Hosted by Josh Hersh
Produced by Amanda Darrach
Research by Kevin Lind

Josh Hersh is an editor at CJR. He was previously a correspondent and senior producer at Vice News.