OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A local radio host has made a stunning admission that will only add more fuel to the fire for those in the Democratic Party seeking to replace President Joe Biden atop the party’s ticket after his dismal debate performance late last month against former President Donald Trump.
Andrea Lawful-Sanders, the host of “The Source” on WURD in Philadelphia, disclosed on CNN Saturday morning that White House officials had provided her with a list of eight questions before her interview with Biden on Wednesday.
News site DNYUZ reported that her revelation highlights the White House’s practice of pre-screening questions for Biden ahead of high-profile interviews.
“The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them,” she told Victor Blackwell, host of the show “First of All” on CNN. Asked if the White House sent the questions to her in advance, she indicated that it was.
“I got several questions — eight of them,” she said. “And the four that were chosen were the ones that I approved.”
Lauren Hitt, a Biden campaign spokeswoman, said it is “not uncommon” for the campaign to share preferred topics. She went on to claim that campaign and White House officials “do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions” by the interviewer.
“Hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners,” she said. “In addition to these interviews, the president also participated in a press gaggle yesterday as well as an interview with ABC. Americans have had several opportunities to see him unscripted since the debate.”
During his appearance on “The Earl Ingram Show” on WMCS in Milwaukee, Biden gave sometimes halting and confusing responses to questions, further casting doubt on his cognitive abilities, DNYUZ reported, including to a question about why voting matters.
“That’s where we always — we gave Donald Trump executive — a power to to use a system — and it’s just never contemplated by our founders because of the people he appointed to the court,” he said, appearing to stutter several times.
“It’s just presidential immunity. He can say that I did this in my capacity as an executive, it may have been wrong, but I did it. But that’s going to hold — because I — and this is the same guy who says that he wants to enact revenge,” Biden continued, without mentioning the fact that his Justice Department is currently attempting to put Trump, his presidential opponent, in jail.
DNYUZ continued:
Mr. Blackwell, interviewing the two radio hosts Saturday morning, appeared surprised by the answer about the preapproved questions.
He had asked Ms. Lawful-Sanders about her four questions because he said he had noticed that they were almost identical to the four that Mr. Ingram had asked in his interview with Mr. Biden the same day.
Mr. Ingram, who was on Mr. Blackwell’s show with Ms. Lawful-Sanders, did not dispute her description of how the questions were selected.
“The reason I ask is not a criticism of either of you,” Blackwell said to the anchors. “It’s just that if the White House is trying now to prove the vim, vigor, acuity of the president, I don’t know how they do that by sending questions first, before the interviews, so that the president knows what’s coming.”
Despite calls for him to step aside, Biden has been adamant that he won’t do that.
“There’s been a lot of speculation: What’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out?” he told a smallish rally crowd on Friday.
“Here’s my answer: I’m running and going to win again,” he said.
