A reporter who recently interviewed Joe Biden has admitted that the conversation was staged, as the President’s campaign team provided them with a list of questions.
Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host of “The Source” on WURD Radio in Philadelphia, said that she was given a list of eight questions ahead of the interview last week.
Amid concerns that he was not fit to lead following a shaky debate performance against Donald Trump, his team scheduled interviews with the radio hosts to reassure voters of his mental fitness. In particular, he spoke to shows with large Black followings to discuss issues affecting Black voters.
During their discussion, Lawful-Sanders asked him four questions about his accomplishments, his debate performance, what he would say to reluctant voters, and how important the election is.
Recent Joe Biden interviewers have been given a list of pre-picked questionsGetty“The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them,” she told CNN’s Victor Blackwell.
“I got several questions — eight of them," she continued. "And the four that were chosen were the ones that I approved.”
Lawful-Sanders was not the only radio host who asked Biden pre-selected questions during an interview last week. Earl Ingram, host of “The Earl Ingram Show” in Milwaukee also spoke with Biden on-air, asking him “essentially the same questions”.
He told ABC: “Yes, I was given some questions for Biden.”
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Lawful-Sanders asked him four questions about his accomplishments, his debate performance, what he would say to reluctant voters, and how important the election is
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Ingram said he was given five questions and ended up asking four of them. He explained: “I didn't get a chance to ask him all the things I wanted to ask.”
Lauren Hitt, a spokeswoman for the Biden campaign, clarified that it was their team, not White House officials, who sent over the questions.
She added that campaign officials “do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions”.
“It’s not at all an uncommon practice for interviewees to share topics they would prefer. These questions were relevant to the news of the day — the president was asked about this debate performance as well as what he’d delivered for black Americans,” she said.
The Biden campaign has since said that it will no longer suggest questions to interviewers.
“While interview hosts have always been free to ask whatever questions they please, moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions,” a source familiar with the Biden booking operation told CNN.
Biden had been lambasted for his debate performance against Donald Trump CNNLawful-Sanders has since resigned from the station, with Sara Lomax, president and CEO of the Philadelphia-based station stating that: “WURD Radio is not a mouthpiece for the Biden or any other Administration.”
In a statement, she said: “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, Lawful-Sanders and WURD Radio have mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately.”
Despite the pre-agreed questions, Biden still stumbled and delivered one of his worse gaffes yet.
As the US celebrated Independence Day, the President appeared to get himself mixed up with his own Vice President, Kamala Harris. He also confused his own time serving as vice-president for Barack Obama.
He said: “By the way, I’m proud to be, as I said, the first vice-president, first black woman… to serve with a black president.”
