White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki admitted to CNN Senior Political Commentator David Axelrod that the staff doesn’t like President Joe Biden taking impromptu questions from reporters.
Axlerod gave Psaki a sympathetic tone, at least to me, implying the administration does not have a choice but to keep Biden on a short leash:
During one portion of the interview, Axelrod asked Psaki “about the handling of Biden.” He noted that the president has “never exactly” been “a precision instrument,” suggesting one of his weaknesses – and strengths – is that “he says what’s on his mind.”“It seems to me that you guys have done a good job of managing that, because a lot of his interactions are speeches and settings in which you have a pretty good sense going in what he’s going to say,” Axelrod pointed out.“I think the thing that’s interesting is that he actually takes questions – I mean he took questions, I mean he did a mini press conference yesterday. He takes questions nearly every day he’s out from the press,” Psaki said after Axelrod wondered about the “impromptu interviews.”
Just wow. “The handling of Biden.” So when we call them his handlers we’re not lying.
From Fox News:
The two began discussing the subject when Axelrod asked Psaki about a particular instance when Biden inadvertently ran into CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins at the White House, who proceeded to ask the president if a minimum wage increase to $15 would be included in the coronavirus relief package that was signed into law in March.Axelrod stated that Biden gave the honest answer that he didn’t think the increase would be included in the bill, but him telling that to the reporter must have given Psaki a lot of heartburn and made her ask herself why Biden would be allowed to roll around in the hallways doing impromptu interviews. He then asked Psaki how she managed that.Psaki laughed off the incident, and explained that it happened after she had already left work and Biden was heading back to his residence. She then claimed that Biden takes questions “nearly every day that he’s out in front of the press.””That is not something we recommend. In fact, a lot of times we say ‘don’t take questions,'” she continued. “But he’s going to do what he wants to do because he’s the president of the United States.”
ACKSHUALLY, ma’am, he is known for leaving everything without taking any questions. It took him 65 days to hold a solo press conference.
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