So now what?
Will Biden continue on in the race? Will there be more calls for him to step aside? Will he listen to anyone outside of his inner circle, which seems to be encouraging him to plow ahead?
On Psaki’s MSNBC show, New York Times reporter Peter Baker noted that this is a big week in Washington as lawmakers return from the holiday break. And there could be a gathering storm of Democratic leaders — whose major focus is to keep Trump out of the White House — urging Biden to walk away.
Newspapers and networks have turned on a steady stream of stories quoting more and more saying Biden should not run.
Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff from California told moderator Kristen Welker, “Given Biden’s incredible record and given Trump’s terrible record he should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. It should not be even close, and the reason it is close is the president’s age.”
Schiff suggests that Biden’s age is an issue, but also did bring up something many Democratic voters want to focus on: Trump’s candidacy. Why are we talking about Biden when we should be talking about Trump, they ask. In fact, it’s surely something that Biden is asking.
In his Post column, Milbank put it well: “Biden’s frustration is understandable. He has amassed an impressive record of achievement. The presidential race should be about that, and about Trump’s lies, and the unique threat he poses to American democracy.”
However, Milbank smartly added, “Biden aides blame the news media for carping on his gaffes since the debate. Democrats’ tendency to panic is also blamed. But the problem is real. The country is talking about Biden’s mental capacity instead of the singular menace of Trump returning to power. And if this keeps up, that is exactly what will happen. It’s not at all clear that Biden can change that storyline without doing what a man standing behind Biden onstage at his Wisconsin rally Friday afternoon recommended with the poster he held up: ‘Pass the torch, Joe.’”
As far as the ABC News interview, and the future, Schiff said on “Meet the Press,” “The interview didn't put concerns to rest. No single interview was going to do that. And what I do think the president needs to decide is, can he put those concerns aside? Can he demonstrate to the American people that what happened on the debate stage was an aberration, that he can and will beat Donald Trump? Given this Supreme Court decision now essentially making any future Trump a dictator and a king, it's all the more important. But here's the thing, I think: If the president takes the time to consult people and has an open mind about this, he will do what Joe Biden always does, which is he will make the right decision. He’ll make the decision in the best interests of the country. That's what he has always done, and I'm confident that's what he will do here.”
Well done
We shouldn't be surprised, but Stephanopoulos did a solid job interviewing Biden, hitting all the notes in the 22-minute sit-down.
The Washington Post’s Will Sommer wrote, “The newsman gently but firmly prodded Biden on his motivations for staying in the race after last week’s halting and unfocused debate performance.”
The New York Times’ Kenneth P. Vogel tweeted, “Very good interview by @gstephanopoulos -- persistent & tough, but not mean. His toughest questions were delivered with empathy.”
But that doesn’t mean Stephanopoulos lobbed up a bunch of softballs. In fact, in one particularly insightful question, Stephanopoulos asked, “If you stay in, and Trump is elected, and everything you’re warning about comes to pass, how will you feel in January?”
(For the record, Biden said, “I’ll feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the good as job as I know I can do, that’s what this is about.”)
Stephanopoulos also pushed Biden, asking him if he felt more frail, and had suffered more “lapses” and if he had seen a doctor.
The New York Times’ Michael M. Grynbaum wrote, “The president arrived at the ABC interview on Friday tanned and tieless, his top two shirt buttons undone, making every effort to project youth and vitality. Yet a viewer could not help but imagine the mop-haired Mr. Stephanopoulos in the role of an adult son, guiding an elderly parent toward a conclusion that may be difficult, and deeply painful, to accept.”
Grynbaum added, “It is too soon to say if their 22-minute encounter on Friday, taped in the library of a Wisconsin middle school and broadcast by ABC in prime time, will count among the most consequential interviews in presidential history. But it carried some of the highest stakes.”
And, overall, Stephanopoulos was up to the challenge.
A controversial interview
The Stephanopoulos interview is getting most of the attention, but Biden actually did another interview that turned out way more controversial — at least in media circles.
Last Wednesday, Biden was interviewed by Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host at Black talk radio station WURD in Philadelphia. On Saturday, Lawful-Sanders appeared on CNN’s “The Source” and revealed to host Victor Blackwell that she asked four questions that had been given to her by Biden’s team.
“The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them,” Lawful-Sanders said on the air.
Blackwell followed up to confirm the Biden camp had sent the questions, and Lawful-Sanders said, “I got several questions. Eight of them. And the four that were chosen were the ones that I approved.”
On Sunday, Sara M. Lomax, president and CEO at WURD Radio, put out a statement saying that the station and Lawful-Sanders had agreed to part ways.
Lomax wrote, “On July 3, the first post-debate interview with President Joe Biden was arranged and negotiated independently by WURD Radio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders without knowledge, consultation or collaboration with WURD management. The interview featured pre-determined questions provided by the White House, which violates our practice of remaining an independent media outlet accountable to our listeners. As a result, Ms. Lawful-Sanders and WURD Radio have mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately.”
Lomax wrote that WURD has built up trust with audiences over 20 years, adding, “This is something we take very seriously. Agreeing to a predetermined set of questions jeopardizes that trust and is not a practice that WURD Radio engages in or endorses as a matter of practice or official policy.”
Lomax also wrote, “WURD Radio is not a mouthpiece for the Biden or any other Administration. Internally, we will commit to reviewing our policies, procedures, and practices to reinforce WURD’s independence and trust with our listeners. But mainstream media should do its own introspection to explore how they have lost the trust of so many Americans, Black Americans chief among them. This experience will strengthen WURD as we seek to grow from this incident.”
Lawful-Sanders posted a one-minute video on Facebook, saying she had tendered her resignation and that it had been accepted. She went on to thank the station and her listeners.
A story to note
