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George Stephanopoulos described Biden as 'heartbreaking up close' during crucial post-debate interview: book
By Lindsay Kornick, Hanna Panreck
Published April 09, 2025
ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos reportedly said his post-debate interview with former President Joe Biden was "heartbreaking up close."
Chris Whipple's new book, titled "Uncharted: How Trump Beat Biden, Harris, and the Odds in the Wildest Campaign in History," which was released on Tuesday, recounted behind-the-scenes conflicts between members of the Democratic Party and the Biden administration over whether Biden needed to step out of the race after his disastrous debate with then-candidate Donald Trump on June 27.
To "staunch the bleeding" of Democrats beginning to publicly call for replacing Biden on the ticket, Whipple wrote about how the White House accepted an interview with the "This Week" host on July 5 to reassure the public about the president’s candidacy.
George Stephanopoulos held the first interview with President Biden after his debate with Trump in 2024. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images | David Livingston/Getty Images)
Whipple described Biden as "hoarse and semi-coherent" throughout the interview and said Stephanopoulos was equally disappointed.
"Stephanopoulos questioned the president gently, like a grandson," Whipple wrote. "Afterward, when I asked the ABC anchor by email for his impressions, he replied: ‘Heartbreaking up close.’"
Fox News Digital reached out to Stephanopoulos’ team for comment.
Stephanopoulos was caught on video in 2024 saying that he didn't think Biden could serve four more years. (Screenshot/ABC/ThisWeek)
Stephanopoulos had a similar response in a video shared by TMZ just days after the interview when he was asked by a man on the street whether Biden needed to step down.
"I don't think he can serve four more years," Stephanopoulos responded.
A spokesperson for ABC News told Fox News Digital at the time that Stephanopoulos was expressing "his own point of view and not the position of ABC News."
Author Chris Whipple described Stephanopoulos' first impressions of Biden after his interview in his newest book "Uncharted." (Getty Images)
Biden’s answers in the Stephanopoulos interview largely failed to calm the storm over his debate performance. Biden at one point suggested he was doing the "goodest job" he could, according to the ABC News transcript. He also seemed somewhat unsure when asked if he’d watched his own debate performance, saying, "I don't think I did, no."
Biden officially dropped out of the race on July 21, less than three weeks after his ABC interview.
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