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A longtime ally of former President Joe Biden advised Home Oversight Committee investigators that he may have been paid a complete of $8 million if the previous president received his 2024 re-election bid, a supply acquainted with the dialog advised Fox Information Digital.
Michael Donilon served as senior advisor to the president for everything of Biden’s four-year time period. Their relationship goes again many years, nevertheless; Donilon first labored for Biden in 1981 when he was a U.S. senator from Delaware.
He’s the most recent ex-Biden administration official to take a seat down with the committee behind closed doorways because it investigates whether or not the previous president’s inside circle coated up proof of his alleged psychological decline, and if govt actions had been signed through autopen with out Biden’s full consciousness.
Donilon stated he didn’t know what the autopen was used for and didn’t recall having any information of the autopen, the supply advised Fox Information Digital.
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Former Biden advisor Mike Donilon testified in a closed-door listening to as a part of the Home Oversight probe into the ex-president’s cognitive health. (Getty Pictures)
However Donilon, who was the highest strategist for Biden’s 2020 and 2024 campaigns, would have apparently earned some $8 million complete if Biden received.
Donilon advised investigators he was paid $4 million to work on Biden’s 2024 marketing campaign, the supply stated. That info was reported by Axios reporter Alex Thompson and CNN host Jake Tapper of their e-book “Unique Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cowl-up, and His Disastrous Option to Run Once more.”
The $4 million he would have gained as well as would have come if Biden had received in 2024.
Biden infamously dropped out of the 2024 race after his disastrous debate in opposition to Donald Trump in June of that 12 months, after weeks of mounting stress by fellow Democrats, each in public and in personal.
Donilon advised investigators he “believes the punditry and Democrats in Congress overreacted after Joe Biden’s disastrous debate,” the supply stated. Donilon additionally argued Biden’s communications abilities “bought stronger” throughout his time as president, the supply added.
President Joe Biden departs the White Home with senior advisor Mike Donilon and deputy chief of workers Bruce Reed in April 2024, simply months earlier than Biden ended his re-election marketing campaign. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Pictures)
“Throughout his interview, Mr. Donilon admitted that Joe Biden’s presence wasn’t as commanding, and he may stumble over extra phrases. Mr. Donilon said he was annoyed and knew it was troublesome to get previous the visuals of President Biden that individuals had been seeing,” the supply stated.
In his opening assertion, obtained by Fox Information Digital, Donilon emphasised his 40-year relationship with Biden and touted the Democratic administration’s accomplishments by means of the COVID-19 pandemic, the rebound in job development in its wake and the Inflation Discount Act and different legislative wins.
“I used to be with President Joe Biden from his first day in workplace to the final day. What I noticed, day in and time out, was a frontrunner who was deeply engaged and in command on crucial points, each at residence and overseas,” Donilon stated in his assertion.
“Each President ages over the 4 years of a presidency and President Biden did as properly, however he additionally continued to develop stronger and wiser as a frontrunner on account of being examined by a number of the most troublesome challenges any President has ever confronted.
“I believed that have was enormously helpful for the nation. I believed that President Biden was the perfect particular person to guide the nation on the day he took the oath of workplace and I continued to consider that was true day-after-day he served as President.”
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Home Oversight Chair James Comer, R-Ky., is main the probe into whether or not Biden’s workers hid indicators of his alleged psychological decline. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Pictures)
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Donilon is the eighth ex-Biden White Home official to seem for the probe led by Home Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky.
A supply acquainted with the Biden crew’s pondering beforehand referred to as Republicans’ probe “harmful” and “an try to smear and embarrass.”
“And their hope is for only one tiny inconsistency between witnesses to seem in order that Trump’s DOJ prosecute his political opponents and proceed his marketing campaign of revenge,” that supply stated.
Fox Information Digital reached out to Donilon’s lawyer and a consultant for Biden for remark.
Fox Information Digital’s Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report
