useapen
2024-07-07 07:05:54 UTC
President Biden's White House went around its normal processes for his
first post-debate interview with a Black radio station earlier this week.
Why it matters: The White House helped draft the questions that the host
asked the president. Then the Biden campaign sent them to the radio
station, given it was technically a campaign interview, a person familiar
with the matter tells Axios.
WURD is the only African-American owned and operated talk radio station in
Pennsylvania, but the White House's director of Black media was not part
of the process.
It is the latest instance of the White House continuing to shield the
president from unscripted moments, even after his debate performance
raised further questions about his mental fitness.
Driving the news: Radio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders told CNN Saturday
morning that her "questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of
them."
Lawful-Sanders, who hosts "The Source" on WURD in Philadelphia, added: "I
got several questions eight of them. And the four that were chosen were
the ones that I approved."
Earl Ingram, who interviewed Biden the day after for his show on a Black
radio station in Milwaukee, also told ABC News Saturday: "Yes, I was given
some questions for Biden."
What they're saying: Biden spokesperson Lauren Hitt told Axios that the
"White House did not manage the process or the questions."
"This was a campaign interview and, as such, it was handled by the
campaign and our Black Media Director. To overcommunicate, the White House
Black media director was not involved because it was a campaign interview
and not a White House one."
Between the lines: Presented with this reporting, some Democrats think the
White House was cynically and patronizingly using Black media at a moment
of crisis.
A Black Democratic strategist in the racial justice space told Axios: "The
only reason President Biden is at the top of this ticket is his genuine,
long-standing relationship with Black voters, built over decades. For his
team to throw that relationship into jeopardy by using Black journalists
as human shields for their communications crisis should be a fireable
offense."
Zoom out: Michael LaRosa, the former press secretary for First Lady Jill
Biden, told Axios that pre-submitting questions to interviewees has long
been a tactic for Biden's team.
When he joined the team in the fall of 2019, he said that some members
tried to do the same for Jill Biden's interviews.
"I was really uncomfortable and had to explain in a more colorful way,"
LaRosa said. "I said specifically. 'Look, it's unethical for you to do
that. They can be called out for screening the questions for [Joe Biden]
but we're not going to embarrass his wife that way. Ever. Do you get it?'"
Zoom in: The questions Lawful-Sanders asked were gentle and similar to
those Ingram asked Biden the next day.
On "The Earl Ingram Show" on WMCS in Milwaukee, he asked Biden: "Can you
speak to some accomplishments that we may or not be familiar with about
your record, especially here in Wisconsin?
Lawful-Sanders asked the day before: "For people that may say 'what has
the Biden-Harris administration done for me as a Black person' what
progress has been made here in Pennsylvania?"
Ingram asked: "A lot of people have been told or have the mindset that
their vote doesn't matter. What can you say to them?
Lawful-Sanders asked: "What do you say to the people who plan on sitting
this election out?"
Hitt, the Biden spokesperson, added: "We do not condition interviews on
acceptance of certain questions, and hosts/ reporters are always free to
ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners."
Go deeper: Biden refuses to take cognitive test, denies he's losing to
Trump
https://www.axios.com/2024/07/06/biden-interview-draft-questions-wurd
first post-debate interview with a Black radio station earlier this week.
Why it matters: The White House helped draft the questions that the host
asked the president. Then the Biden campaign sent them to the radio
station, given it was technically a campaign interview, a person familiar
with the matter tells Axios.
WURD is the only African-American owned and operated talk radio station in
Pennsylvania, but the White House's director of Black media was not part
of the process.
It is the latest instance of the White House continuing to shield the
president from unscripted moments, even after his debate performance
raised further questions about his mental fitness.
Driving the news: Radio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders told CNN Saturday
morning that her "questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of
them."
Lawful-Sanders, who hosts "The Source" on WURD in Philadelphia, added: "I
got several questions eight of them. And the four that were chosen were
the ones that I approved."
Earl Ingram, who interviewed Biden the day after for his show on a Black
radio station in Milwaukee, also told ABC News Saturday: "Yes, I was given
some questions for Biden."
What they're saying: Biden spokesperson Lauren Hitt told Axios that the
"White House did not manage the process or the questions."
"This was a campaign interview and, as such, it was handled by the
campaign and our Black Media Director. To overcommunicate, the White House
Black media director was not involved because it was a campaign interview
and not a White House one."
Between the lines: Presented with this reporting, some Democrats think the
White House was cynically and patronizingly using Black media at a moment
of crisis.
A Black Democratic strategist in the racial justice space told Axios: "The
only reason President Biden is at the top of this ticket is his genuine,
long-standing relationship with Black voters, built over decades. For his
team to throw that relationship into jeopardy by using Black journalists
as human shields for their communications crisis should be a fireable
offense."
Zoom out: Michael LaRosa, the former press secretary for First Lady Jill
Biden, told Axios that pre-submitting questions to interviewees has long
been a tactic for Biden's team.
When he joined the team in the fall of 2019, he said that some members
tried to do the same for Jill Biden's interviews.
"I was really uncomfortable and had to explain in a more colorful way,"
LaRosa said. "I said specifically. 'Look, it's unethical for you to do
that. They can be called out for screening the questions for [Joe Biden]
but we're not going to embarrass his wife that way. Ever. Do you get it?'"
Zoom in: The questions Lawful-Sanders asked were gentle and similar to
those Ingram asked Biden the next day.
On "The Earl Ingram Show" on WMCS in Milwaukee, he asked Biden: "Can you
speak to some accomplishments that we may or not be familiar with about
your record, especially here in Wisconsin?
Lawful-Sanders asked the day before: "For people that may say 'what has
the Biden-Harris administration done for me as a Black person' what
progress has been made here in Pennsylvania?"
Ingram asked: "A lot of people have been told or have the mindset that
their vote doesn't matter. What can you say to them?
Lawful-Sanders asked: "What do you say to the people who plan on sitting
this election out?"
Hitt, the Biden spokesperson, added: "We do not condition interviews on
acceptance of certain questions, and hosts/ reporters are always free to
ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners."
Go deeper: Biden refuses to take cognitive test, denies he's losing to
Trump
https://www.axios.com/2024/07/06/biden-interview-draft-questions-wurd