Biden aides reportedly considered putting him in wheelchair due to 'physical deterioration' — but had one condition

President Joe Biden's physical decline was reportedly so rapid that his team discussed putting him a wheelchair if he was re-elected, especially if he suffered another fall.

According to a new book from CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios' Alex Thompson, Biden aides discussed the president's serious physical decline, with others in his inner circle reportedly concerned about the degeneration of his spine.

The 46th president's "halting walk" was of particular concern to his staff, as was the potential of Biden suffering a devastating fall. The fears reportedly came after Biden tripped over a sandbag at the Air Force Academy in June 2023, which resulted in increased precautions over his walking paths and stage layouts.

According to Axios, Biden's team tried to implement shorter walking routes for the president, increasingly had him wear sneakers, and insisted on the installation of handrails up to the stage for his appearances. These changes were coupled with visual briefings to ensure that the president knew his particular path for each event. The situation was reportedly so dire that the briefings were described as an effort to ensure that Biden knew every step he was expected to take.

Biden's doctor, Kevin O'Connor, allegedly even had concerns that another fall could necessitate a wheelchair for the president.

CNN Presidential Debate at the CNN Studios on June 27, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

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Staff and O'Connor's concerns over Biden's "severe" levels of "physical deterioration" inspired internal discussions about the use of a wheelchair, but staff reportedly did not want to put the president's health first and were willing to wait "until after the election."

The president's team reportedly said it was politically untenable to have him use a wheelchair during the re-election campaign.

The president's physician expressed even more concerns, believing that if Biden suffered another fall, it would be a "difficult recovery."

The doctor was so worried that he reportedly joked at times that he was the only one trying to keep the president alive, whereas Biden's staff was trying to kill him. O'Connor allegedly wanted Biden to have more rest than presidential aides were allowing, and his diagnoses were even at odds with what Biden staffers were saying about his health.

For example, White House aides said the president's poor gait was a result of a foot fracture, but O'Connor had said that "both small fractures of his foot are completely healed" and that "this injury has healed as expected."

As well, O'Connor said publicly that Biden's posture problems were from "significant spinal arthritis."

An anonymous Biden spokesperson told Axios that his "medical exam made clear that he had a stiffened gait caused, in part, by wear and tear to his spine — but that no special treatment was necessary and that it had not worsened."

"He was transparent about this, and it was far from 'severe,'" the statement continued. "Yes, there were physical changes as he got older, but evidence of aging is not evidence of mental incapacity."

The spokesperson concluded, "We are still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline."

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'Those who claimed nothing was wrong are politically and perhaps literally blind.'

Corporate and liberal media are "wholly guilty" of "failing to show courage to report out what was happening before our very eyes," said Curtis Houck, managing editor of MRC NewsBusters.

Houck told Blaze News, "Those who claimed nothing was wrong are politically and perhaps literally blind, and those who knew but bowed to political pressures are guilty of the highest order of cowardice."'

CNN's Tapper, who wrote the book — "Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again" — has been criticized for on-air confrontations in which he accused others of lacking a medical background when pointing out the president's deterioration.

In October 2020, Tapper accused Lara Trump of mocking Biden's "stutter" when she attempted to refer to a "cognitive decline."

Houck added that without a media "cover-up," Vice President Kamala Harris likely would not have been the Democratic nominee in 2024.

"The criticism will be of Tapper and Thompson and their sources withholding key anecdotes that would have further accelerated Biden’s exit and allowed for a longer runway for whoever the Democratic nominee would have been, because it certainly wouldn't have been Kamala Harris."

Blaze News reached out to the Office of Joe and Jill Biden regarding claims made in the upcoming book. This article will be updated with any applicable responses.

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