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For years, conservative media, lawmakers and talking heads have sounded the alarm President Joe Biden’s cognitive freefall. And for years, left-wing media, lawmakers, and their loyal mouthpieces waved it off with the same condescending dismissal—accusing us of lying, fear-mongering, or worse. Some even went so far as to say they couldn’t keep up with Biden’s supposed brilliance from what was usually just one morning briefing and two afternoon naps.
Fast-forward to the post-presidency. Now that Biden has been shuffled out of office, left-wing media seems to be waking up to the glaringly obvious. The New York Times of all places — yes, the same article that acted as Biden’s PR firm — has revealed that he relied on teleprompers during intimate fundraisers in private homes. At events where he had to come across as casual and personable, he needed scripted prompts. Donors were not exactly confident.
House Speaker Mike Johnson dropped a bombshell about a January 2024 meeting in which Biden was apparently stunned to learn that he had signed an executive order banning liquefied natural gas exports just weeks earlier. He repeatedly denied even knowing. Johnson believed Biden didn’t know what he was signing, leaving him with a terrifying question: “Who runs the country?”
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Spoiler alert: it wasn’t Biden. And to answer Johnson’s question, there are at least five shady figures who may have been behind the wheel — or rather, rolling the car downhill with no one on the brakes.
Former US President Barack Obama is one of the likely candidates for whom the Biden White House led behind the scenes. (Reuters/Alyssa Pointer)
1. Former President Barack Obama
Remember when Former President Barack Obama Joked in a 2020 interview with Stephen Colbert that he loved a third term where he could play puppet master while someone else did his bidding? Well, guess what – he might as well have been describing the Biden presidency.
The continuity of Obama-era policies under Biden is striking. Biden’s radical economic and climate boondoggles — like Build Better Better and the Inflation Reduction Act — weren’t just echoes of Obama’s agenda; They were copies, with Biden playing the role of a less convincing understudy. Biden’s own “Obamacare” albatross was just as disastrous, except this time it was painted green, cost even more and led to an inflation nightmare.
And let’s not forget the Afghanistan withdrawal fiasco, which had Obama’s fingerprints all over it. The same architects of Obama-era failure were in charge, dangling timelines and ignoring warnings. Meanwhile, Biden seemed to be caught off guard at every turn, surprised by how the plan unfolded — because he probably wasn’t the one pulling the strings. Who were Biden’s Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and CIA Director William Burns who actually responded?
Obama wasn’t exactly subtle about staying in the photo. He Gave Biden Advice, Headlining White House events, and reportedly holding closed-door meetings with key officials. By 2023, as Biden’s mental decline became increasingly difficult to camouflage, Politico openly wondered, “Is Barack Obama ready to reassert himself?” He may have been delivering the whole time, or at least working the wheel while Biden tried to figure out where the car keys were.
2. First Lady Jill Biden
The First Lady was Joe Biden’s handler, coach and babysitter. Jill Biden’s influence on Joe’s decision-making has been an open secret for years, starting with his decision to run for president in 2020, though close advisers reportedly warned he didn’t have the stamina for a grueling campaign.
When Joe Biden’s promise to be a one-term president, and Democrats began looking at the door for their next candidate, it was Jill who convinced him to run for re-election—despite what she had to know about his apparent decline . Was this about his legacy, or was it just a desperate power grab?
After Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump, where he looked more confused than commanding, Jill delivered the kind of praise that would make North Korean propagandists blush: “You answered every question! You knew all the facts!”
It was as credible as former Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas telling us the border was secure while we watched videos of illegal immigrants streaming across it. Mayorkas Lied to Protect an Agenda; Jill lied to protect her husband’s image – and her own hold on influence.
First Lady Jill Biden, third from left, speaks during a Biden Cabinet meeting. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Remember the infamous photo of her sitting in the president’s chair on Air Force One as she “prepared for the G7 summit”? Or how She chaired a cabinet meeting last September? Since when does the First Lady have cabinet meetings? Jill stepped in when her husband was disengaged, disoriented or otherwise absent – a role that feels more like an acting president than a loving partner.
3. Chief of Staff Jeff Zients
Biden’s chief of staff Jeff Zients, often called a “fixer,” quietly emerged as one of the most powerful figures in the administration. Zients’ influence was evident in the early stages of the pandemic, when he led the Covid-19 response team. Since then, his role has expanded, effectively making him the behind-the-scenes manager of the White House with a president who didn’t understand what was really going on.
Zients played a critical part in shaping and managing the administration’s daily agenda, including overseeing staff decisions and ensuring implementation of Biden’s initiatives. He recruited a third deputy chief of staff, Natalie Quillian, to implement the administration’s initiatives, but the move was internally controversial, ruffling the feathers of those who saw her as Zienten’s enforcer as the “bad cop.”
Given Zients’ reputation as a detailed manager with significant control over White House operations, it is certainly plausible that he orchestrated the signing of the executive order by halting liquefied natural gas exports, thereby aligning it with his broader environmental or economic goals without deep need for Biden’s involvement.
4. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan
His role as National Security Advisor positioned him as a key figure in the Biden administration, but given the president’s cognitive skills, it may have simply called the shots. Too bad he wasn’t very successful.
Sullivan was instrumental in orchestrating major policies such as the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, where he led the planning process. Sullivan was so involved that it caught the attention of Congressman Mike McCaul, who demanded that Sullivan testify before a House committee. He also played a key role in shaping the administration’s industrial strategy, promoting policies to protect U.S. manufacturing and countering China’s technological advances.
Given these substantial responsibilities and his central role in formulating and implementing policy, it is likely that Sullivan functioned as a de facto leader within the administration, especially given Biden’s ability to govern.
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5. A purple-haired 24-year-old intern who moonlights as a Tiktok influencer
The radical shift in gender and race policy under the Biden administration screams of a progressive activist completely out of touch with mainstream America.
Former White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients is another likely possibility for who pulled the strings in the Biden White House. File:Sients attend an event in the East Room of the White House on March 1, 2023. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Biden’s decision to allow biological males to compete in competitive sports—signed as an executive order on day one—demonstrates the extreme agenda of far-left influencers. Add to that the administration’s push for critical race theory training in federal agencies and the abandonment of meritocracy for race- and gender-conscious hiring.
These policies feel like they were dreamed up by a 24-year-old progressive fresh out of college, fresh off a “gap year” funded by their parents while “roughing it” in luxury hotels across Europe.
Then there’s the White House’s reliance on Tiktok and X influencers like Harry Sisson and Chris Mowrey. Watching influencers awkwardly dance while claiming that their love for an octogenarian president wasn’t just embarrassing — it was a window into who really shapes the administration’s messaging.
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The First Lady was Joe Biden’s handler, coach and babysitter. Jill Biden’s influence on Joe’s decision-making has been an open secret for years, starting with his decision to run for president in 2020, though close advisers reportedly warned he didn’t have the stamina for a grueling campaign.
What kind of adult turns to Tiktok Twerps for serious promotion? Probably another Tiktok Twerp with access to Biden’s social media accounts. This cringe-worthy reliance on influencers reflects a radicalized presence on the youth in the White House, which has a major impact on both policy and messaging.
Refusing it
Could Vice President Kamala Harris really be running the show? Unlikely. She handled her VP title the same way she handled her border czar role – loving the prestige while doing next to nothing. As for Hunter Biden, he may have had influence, but running a shadow presidency while hawking finger paintings for Oval Office Access? That’s a full-time job in itself. And actor George Clooney? Sure, he ended Biden’s presidency with one editorial, but let’s be real — would someone with that kind of influence give up power so easily? Doubt it.
