It was only a matter of time before the quiet whispers in DC corridors became a roar. If you’ve been following the news lately, you know that Original Sin Jake Tapper is the phrase on everyone's lips, but not for the reasons you might think. We aren’t talking about a theological debate or a new thriller novel—though Tapper does plenty of those.
We are talking about a massive, non-fiction exposé.
Earlier this year, Jake Tapper, the face of CNN’s "The Lead," teamed up with Axios reporter Alex Thompson to drop a book that has effectively set the political world on fire. Titled Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, the book doesn't pull any punches. It’s a brutal, 2026-perspective look back at the mechanics of the 2024 election cycle.
What Is the "Original Sin" Jake Tapper Is Talking About?
Honestly, the title says it all. Tapper and Thompson argue that the "original sin" of the 2024 Democratic collapse wasn't just the debate performance in June. It was the collective decision by Joe Biden’s inner circle—and the President himself—to ignore the obvious signs of cognitive decline as early as 2023.
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They describe a "Greek tragedy" where the hero’s attempt to save the country actually leads to the very outcome he feared.
The book is basically a 400-page "I told you so" backed up by interviews with over 100 insiders. Tapper’s reporting suggests that the White House was essentially running a "sundowning" schedule. Staffers were scripting every single word, even for casual interactions. It’s the kind of stuff that makes you look at those old 2024 clips in a much darker light.
Why This Book Is Different From His Thrillers
You might know Tapper from his Charlie and Margaret Marder series. Those are historical fiction—fun, fast-paced romps through the 50s and 70s involving Evel Knievel and the Rat Pack. Original Sin, however, is a cold-blooded autopsy of a modern political machine.
The Contrast in Tapper’s Work:
- The Fiction Side: Books like All the Demons Are Here (2023) focus on 1977. They use historical flair to tell a story about Ike and Lucy Marder. There’s a lot of "disco-era" grime and mystery.
- The Reality Side: Original Sin (2025) is pure journalism. It deals with the 4:00 PM "slump," the "empty-eyed gape," and the specific ways the DNC allegedly "gaslit" the public about the President's fitness.
Tapper has always been a history buff, but here he’s writing history as it’s still cooling on the pavement. He paints a picture of a White House in denial, where George Clooney—of all people—became a whistleblower after a fundraiser where Biden reportedly didn't recognize him.
The Backlash and the Buzz
Not everyone is happy. Predictably, some Democratic loyalists have called the book a "betrayal" or "revisionist history." But Tapper’s defense is pretty straightforward: he’s a reporter. His job isn't to protect a legacy; it's to document what happened.
The book has been a massive hit on the 2026 charts because it answers the question that haunted the last election: How did nobody see this coming? According to Tapper, everybody saw it. They just chose to look away.
He details how Cabinet members, donors, and even Hollywood power players were all in on the "secret," yet they kept the wheels turning until the catastrophic June 27th debate. It’s a tough read if you were a fan of the administration, but it’s essential if you want to understand why the political map looks the way it does today.
Facts vs. Fiction: Sorting the Tapper Bibliography
It’s easy to get confused because Tapper is so prolific. If you’re searching for "Original Sin Jake Tapper," make sure you aren’t accidentally buying a 1970s detective novel.
- The Hellfire Club (2018): 1950s DC, McCarthyism, and a freshman Congressman.
- The Devil May Dance (2021): The Marders meet Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack.
- All the Demons Are Here (2023): 1977, Evel Knievel, and a DC serial killer.
- Original Sin (2025): The non-fiction deep dive into the 2024 election.
The common thread is Tapper’s obsession with power—how it’s gained, how it’s hidden, and how it eventually rots. Whether he’s writing about a fictional senator in 1954 or a real president in 2024, the theme is always the same: someone is lying, and the truth is probably worse than you think.
How to Digest the Revelations
If you're going to dive into Original Sin, do it with a grain of salt and an open mind. It’s a polarizing piece of work. Tapper is a veteran of the DC scene, and he knows how the game is played. He isn't just throwing stones from the outside; he’s describing a building he’s been standing in for twenty years.
The most actionable way to approach this is to look at the sourcing. Tapper and Thompson use a mix of named and "deep background" sources to build their timeline. Pay attention to the dates. The most damning parts of the book aren't about what happened in 2024, but what was happening behind the scenes in late 2022 and early 2023.
Takeaways for the Political Junkie:
- Watch the Gatekeepers: The book highlights how a small circle of advisors can effectively "wall off" a world leader.
- Trust Your Eyes: One of Tapper’s points is that the public saw the decline in real-time on social media, but were told by "experts" that the videos were "cheap fakes."
- History Repeats: The same patterns of hubris Tapper wrote about in his 1950s novels played out in the modern West Wing.
If you want to understand the current state of American politics, you can't ignore this book. It’s uncomfortable, it’s blunt, and it’s arguably the most important piece of political reporting to come out this decade.
To get the most out of Tapper's reporting, start by comparing the "official" White House transcripts from 2023 against the specific anecdotes detailed in the book's third chapter. You can also track the timeline of when major Democratic donors began publicly pulling their support, as Tapper links these shifts directly to private meetings that are only now coming to light. Reading Original Sin alongside Tapper’s previous fiction provides a unique lens into how he views the cyclical nature of Washington's "demons."