Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who is campaigning for the position of California governor in 2026, has publicly criticized two prominent Democrats, Kamala Harris and Xavier Becerra, for their perceived complicity in covering up former President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline. Villaraigosa’s remarks came during a statement he issued on Tuesday, where he claimed that such actions contributed to the electoral success of Donald Trump in the November election.
Villaraigosa asserted that at the highest levels of government, there were intentional efforts to hide Biden’s deteriorating mental state from the public. “At the highest levels of our government, those in power were intentionally complicit or told outright lies in a systematic cover-up to keep Joe Biden’s mental decline from the public,” he stated. He further emphasized that both Harris, who is weighing a potential gubernatorial run, and Becerra, who is also a candidate, were involved in this alleged deception.
“Voters deserve to know the truth: what did Kamala Harris and Xavier Becerra know, when did they know it, and most importantly, why didn’t either of them speak out?” Villaraigosa questioned, highlighting the importance of transparency in political leadership.
The basis for Villaraigosa’s strong statements comes from the recently released book titled “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again.” Authored by Jake Tapper of CNN and Alex Thompson of Axios, the book relies heavily on anonymous sources and argues that Biden’s close associates concealed his declining health from the American public, a situation that arguably facilitated the Republican victory in the 2024 presidential election.
According to the book, Biden’s decline has been evident for as long as a decade, with political advisors and family members allegedly working to hide the truth from voters. One notable incident cited in the book involved Biden confusing Becerra with Alejandro Mayorkas, the Secretary of Homeland Security, underscoring the severity of his cognitive issues.
In response to Villaraigosa's accusations, Becerra refrained from directly addressing the claims regarding Biden's cognitive decline. Instead, he extended his well wishes to the former president as he embarks on treatment for an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has metastasized to his bones. Becerra defended his record during his tenure as the nation's health chief, highlighting his commitment to making critical decisions for the health agency.
“I met with President Biden when needed to make important decisions and to execute with my team at HHS,” Becerra stated. He acknowledged that while it was evident the President was aging, he remained focused on significant tasks, such as expanding healthcare access and addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. “We delivered,” he concluded, emphasizing the achievements of his administration.
As of Tuesday afternoon, efforts to obtain a statement from Kamala Harris’s representatives were unsuccessful. The silence on her part adds another layer of intrigue to Villaraigosa's allegations, as the race for the California governor's office continues to heat up.
As the political landscape evolves, Villaraigosa's accusations against Harris and Becerra may play a significant role in shaping public perception and voter sentiment leading up to the gubernatorial election.
