Washington Post slams Biden for not doing more press conferences

by Alex Gangitano - 05/09/23 9:57 AM ET

FILE - President Joe Biden laughs as he speaks during the White House Correspondents' Association dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, Saturday, April 29, 2023. As Biden, the oldest president in U.S. history, embarks on his reelection campaign, he is increasingly musing aloud about his advanced age, cracking self-deprecating jokes and framing his decades in public life as a plus, hoping to persuade voters his age is an asset rather than a vulnerability. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File) — FILE – President Joe Biden laughs as he speaks during the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner at the Washington Hilton in Washington, Saturday, April 29, 2023. As Biden, the oldest president in U.S. history, embarks on his reelection campaign, he is increasingly musing aloud about his advanced age, cracking self-deprecating jokes and framing his decades in public life as a plus, hoping to persuade voters his age is an asset rather than a vulnerability. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

The Washington Post editorial board slammed President Biden for not doing more press conferences, calling him a “news media evader.”

In the op-ed, entitled “Biden no longer does press conferences. That’s not acceptable,” the board pointed out Biden has not done a solo news conference so far in 2023 and has conducted only two joint news conferences with a visiting foreign leader.

“President Biden hasn’t dropped the microphone; he appears to have lost it. Mr. Biden is turning into a news media evader, and it’s harmful to his presidency and the nation. In the past 100 years, only Presidents Richard M. Nixon and Ronald Reagan averaged fewer news conferences than Mr. Biden,” the board wrote.

The board also argued Biden doesn’t interact informally with the media much, though the White House, when pressed about the lack of news conferences by the president, argues he answers questions informally from the media frequently.

“The president and his team promised transparency. Instead, he is stonewalling the media,” the board wrote.

The board pointed out that when Biden makes remarks — like he did on Monday alongside Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — he tends to walk off and ignore shouted questions from the press.

The president joked about not taking questions during his speech at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, saying, “In a lot of ways, this dinner sums up my first two years in office. I’ll talk for 10 minutes, take zero questions and cheerfully walk away.”

In pressing Biden to do more press conferences, the board argued it would give confidence to Americans that he can do the job as president.

“Taking questions from the media promotes public accountability. It also shows that the president is willing to defend his positions and instills confidence that he can do the job. It is widely known that Mr. Biden is gaffe-prone and that news conferences are not his forte. But as he runs for a second term, he should be eager to show he can handle all aspects of the job,” the board wrote.

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