Outrage erupted across social media Friday after Axios published newly obtained audio of former President Joe Biden appearing to struggle with memory lapses during a special counsel interview, which quickly triggered criticism of the outlet itself.
The audio, obtained by Axios, captures Biden occasionally slurring his words and losing his train of thought during questioning by special counsel Robert Hur, who infuriated the Biden White House when he concluded that the Democrat was “a well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
Now, the decision to publish the recording has sparked new fury.
“Axios colluding with Trump to keep the Biden pile on going,” veteran political campaign reporter Sam Youngman wrote on Bluesky.
EXCLUSIVE: Breastfeeding mom of US citizen sues Kristi Noem after being grabbed by ICE
“The Hur tapes are the last straw -- I will not be supporting Joe Biden in the 2028 presidential election,” journalist Aaron Rupar quipped on Bluesky.
He added in a follow-up post: “To be clear about what happened here, the Trump White House released audio meant to make Joe Biden look bad to Axios hours after the US's credit rating was downgraded. Trump wanted a distraction and the usual suspects in the press are happy to oblige.”
“Am I wrong that a couple years ago Axios wasn’t complete and total s---?” Princeton University history professor Kevin M. Kruse wrote on X. “What changed?”