‘FIRST BLACK WOMAN’

Biden Campaign Fed Philly Radio Interviewers Questions, Biden Still Gaffed

A source familiar with the Biden booking operation told The Daily Beast, “moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions.”

The Biden campaign reportedly fed Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host of “The Source,” eight questions to ask President Joe Biden before a radio appearance on Wednesday. Lawful-Sanders told CNN’s Victor Blackwell during a Saturday appearance on his show, First of All, that, “the questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them.” Lawful-Sanders claimed eight questions were sent to her by the White House, and of them, she asked four, later adding that she “never once felt pressured to ask certain questions.” Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt told The Daily Beast that, “hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners,” but qualified that the campaign, not the White House, did share a list of questions with Lawful-Sanders. A source familiar with the Biden booking operation also told The Daily Beast, “While interview hosts have always been free to ask whatever questions they please, moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions.” During the interview, Biden claimed that he was “the first vice president, first Black woman, to serve with a Black president,” and that he was “the first president that got elected statewide in the state of Delaware, when I was a kid.” Earl Ingram, the host of a Wisconsin-based radio show, similarly told the Associated Press that the Biden campaign “gave me the exact questions to ask.” Biden’s gaffes and the fact that the questions were fed to the hosts by the campaign is raising serious questions around the president’s ability to communicate, even within a controlled media environment. Biden’s rival, Trump, has equally had his own problems, reportedly canceling an interview last month after querying a reporter on their questions.