Top Democrats, including Hillary Clinton, foresaw trouble for Joe Biden’s political future well before his campaign faltered. Their early warnings, revealed through House Oversight Committee testimony, paint a picture of a party quietly bracing for turbulence.

According to Fox News Digital, Ron Klain, Biden’s former chief of staff, told investigators that Clinton approached him with concerns about the ex-president’s viability "by 2024." Months before Biden dropped his re-election bid, Jake Sullivan, a former national security adviser, also flagged to Klain that Biden seemed "less effective" compared to two years prior.

This isn’t just idle gossip from the sidelines; it’s a stark signal from within the Democratic elite that all was not well. While Klain defended Biden’s ability to govern, he admitted the then-president grew more forgetful and often mixed up names over time, raising questions about why these red flags weren’t addressed sooner.

Early Warnings from Party Insiders

Clinton and Sullivan, both heavyweights in Democratic circles, didn’t hold back in their private assessments to Klain. Their doubts, though not explicitly tied to mental decline in the testimony, suggest a deeper unease about Biden’s capacity to carry the party forward.

Sullivan’s remark that Biden was slipping compared to 2022 cuts sharply, especially given his role as a trusted adviser. Yet, his representative, Adrienne Watson, pushed back hard, denying any pre-debate conversation with Klain on the matter and calling the sources flat-out wrong.

Clinton, meanwhile, offered no public comment through contacts reached by Fox News Digital. Her silence leaves room for speculation, but her reported concern speaks volumes about the fractures forming behind closed doors long before the public took notice.

House Probe Digs into Biden’s Inner Circle

The House Oversight Committee, led by Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., is laser-focused on whether Biden’s aides hid signs of decline. Klain’s over-five-hour voluntary interview on Thursday is just one piece of a broader effort to uncover what top staffers knew and when.

Unlike other former aides who dodged questions under subpoena by pleading the Fifth, Klain cooperated fully, answering every query, as noted by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. Even Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., found Klain credible, suggesting his testimony carries weight across party lines.

Still, Klain’s admissions about Biden’s waning energy and memory lapses fuel the narrative that those closest to the ex-president saw cracks but kept the facade intact. It’s hard not to wonder if loyalty trumped transparency when the stakes were so high.

Democratic Defenses and Republican Pressure

Not everyone is buying the story spun from Klain’s interview. A source tied to Sullivan insisted he never discussed Biden’s political prospects with Klain before the debate, and certainly not alongside Clinton, casting doubt on the timeline and context of these alleged talks.

On the flip side, a Biden team source labeled the Republican-led probe as "dangerous," accusing it of being a smear tactic aimed at finding any inconsistency to weaponize against political foes. This pushback hints at a deeper fear of how such investigations could be twisted into tools of retribution.

Meanwhile, Klain’s own take on Donald Trump’s mental fitness, as shared with investigators, was surprisingly neutral, stating there was no reason to question it. This tidbit stands out as a rare moment of balance in a probe that’s otherwise steeped in partisan tension.

What This Means for Political Trust

As more former aides like Jeff Zients are called to testify, the probe into Biden’s tenure risks becoming a lightning rod for broader questions about accountability in government. If top Democrats harbored doubts but stayed silent publicly, it erodes trust in a system already battered by skepticism.

The testimony, even if contested, underscores a troubling reality: the public often learns of leadership struggles only after the damage is done. When figures like Clinton and Sullivan reportedly sound alarms behind the scenes, one has to ask why those whispers didn’t reach the wider audience sooner.

In the end, this saga isn’t just about Biden or his team; it’s about whether the machinery of power prioritizes image over candor. With both sides digging in, the truth may be the hardest thing to uncover, but the pursuit of it remains a necessary check on those who govern.