A key former aide to Jill Biden refused to answer any questions in a closed-door House Oversight Committee deposition, as investigators dig into whether Joe Biden’s cognitive decline was deliberately hidden from the public.
Key Facts:
- Anthony Bernal, a senior advisor to First Lady Jill Biden, took the Fifth Amendment during a July 16 deposition with House investigators.
- The House Oversight Committee is investigating whether former White House aides concealed President Biden’s mental decline and allowed executive actions via autopen without his full awareness.
- Bernal was originally scheduled for a voluntary interview in June but backed out after executive privilege was waived.
- He is the second Biden associate to invoke the Fifth, following former White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor.
- Bernal is still listed as Jill Biden’s chief of staff in the Biden Transition Office.
The Rest of The Story:
Anthony Bernal, one of Jill Biden’s closest aides, appeared briefly before the House Oversight Committee this week, only to plead the Fifth Amendment to every question posed by investigators.
The committee is probing whether senior staffers in the Biden White House concealed signs of President Joe Biden’s cognitive and physical decline during his presidency.
Bernal, a longtime Biden insider and former assistant to the president, had initially agreed to a voluntary interview last month.
However, he withdrew after the Trump administration waived executive privilege for Bernal and several other officials, clearing the way for direct questioning.
Despite the waived privilege, Bernal refused to cooperate.
“It’s abundantly clear that Anthony Bernal – Jill Biden’s so-called ‘work husband’ – never intended to be transparent about Joe Biden’s cognitive decline and the ensuing cover-up,” House Oversight Chair James Comer said in a statement.
Bernal is not the only one withholding answers.
Former White House physician Dr. Kevin O’Connor also took the Fifth in a recent deposition, declining to answer any questions, even those unrelated to doctor-patient confidentiality.
Meanwhile, two other former White House staffers have cooperated with the investigation, and a third, Annie Tomasini, has been subpoenaed to appear next.
According to the book Original Sin by CNN’s Jake Tapper and Axios’ Alex Thompson, Bernal had earned the nickname “loyalty police” for his aggressive protection of the Bidens.
He currently remains active in the post-presidency Transition Office as Jill Biden’s chief of staff.
NEW: Anthony Bernal – Chief of Staff to Dr. Jill Biden – refusing to answer questions before heading into a subpoenaed deposition before the @GOPoversight where he plead the Fifth Amendment… pic.twitter.com/TKQyd8iUvM
— Griff Jenkins (@GriffJenkins) July 16, 2025
Commentary:
Anthony Bernal’s decision to plead the Fifth isn’t just about self-protection—it’s a clear red flag.
If there were nothing to hide, why not simply answer questions?
His silence only fuels growing suspicions that a deliberate cover-up took place at the highest levels of government.
For years, Americans suspected that something was wrong with President Biden, and now the pieces are falling into place.
Aides like Bernal appear to have shielded the truth, operating as de facto gatekeepers while the president’s capacity visibly declined.
If Biden wasn’t truly making the decisions, then who was?
There’s compelling evidence that executive actions, including pardons, were issued using autopen without Biden’s direct input.
That would mean the country was governed—at least in part—by staffers acting in his name, without proper oversight or accountability.
This isn’t just political drama. It’s potentially the largest deception ever carried out by a modern presidential administration.
The only remotely comparable moment in U.S. history was the concealment of FDR’s physical condition. But FDR, even in a wheelchair, retained full control of his mind.
Joe Biden, by contrast, was clearly not capable of fulfilling the duties of the presidency for a significant period of time.
The fact that Dr. O’Connor also pleaded the Fifth, without even answering questions unrelated to doctor-patient confidentiality, further strengthens the case that the White House was orchestrating a full-scale concealment operation.
The American people were deprived of the truth—and possibly their right to consent to presidential leadership through the ballot box.
This is more than a scandal. It is a betrayal of the public trust and of the Constitution itself.
Those involved in the cover-up should face real consequences. Criminal charges, where appropriate, must be pursued.
But more than that, new safeguards must be put in place to prevent such abuses from ever happening again.
The presidency is not a puppet theater. The voters deserve to know who is really in charge.
The Bottom Line:
Anthony Bernal’s refusal to answer questions under oath is a major development in the House’s investigation into the Biden White House cover-up.
His silence supports growing claims that the president’s cognitive decline was hidden from the public while decisions were made without his direct input.
This raises serious constitutional and ethical questions about who was really running the country—and demands urgent action to ensure accountability and reform.
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