According to a new report, President Joe Biden’s staffers go to extraordinary lengths to help him, including preparing simple instructions for him to walk to a podium.
Staffers admitted they create documents with oversized print and photos showing him what route to take when he approaches a podium. Those documents have included phrases such as “Walk to the podium,” “View from podium,” and “View from audience,” Axios reported.
“It surprised me that a seasoned political pro like the president would need detailed verbal and visual instructions on how to enter and exit a room,” a staffer who worked on a Biden fundraiser said.
But a White House official defended the practice, saying, “If individuals are not accustomed to seeing advance teams work, that would be a common reaction, whoever the principal is.”
White House spokesperson Andrew Bates echoed, “High levels of detail and precision are critical to presidential advance work — regardless of who is president — and these are basic approaches that are used by any modern advance team, including the vice president’s office and agencies.”
“These documents are standard logistical briefing materials and photos for any principal, including the vice president,” Vice President Kamala Harris’ spokesperson Kirsten Allen iterated.
In mid-June, at the end of a Saturday night fundraiser studded with Hollywood celebrities, former President Barack Obama briefly took President Biden’s hand and appeared to guide him off the stage. Video of the moment went viral, prompting the White House to claim that Republicans were pushing “cheap fakes” on the public to damage the president politically.
As the band played and Obama waved to the audience, Biden initially waved to the crowd until he stopped and stood still for a moment with his hands clenched, only turning to leave when Obama took his hand. Obama then walked with the president, his hand on the Biden’s back, off stage.
The video followed another viral clip of a curious moment involving Biden.
At the G-7 summit, Biden was standing with other leaders who were facing forward when he started wandering off to the side, apparently to talk with a parachuter. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni crossed in front of the other leaders and retrieved him.
Also at the G-7 summit, Biden awkwardly pressed his forehead into the forehead of Pope Francis, leaving the Pope befuddled.
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