Why all of the secrecy?
Residents of Nashville shared their views on the increasing tension between President Biden and the White House press corps, as well as their perceptions of his administration’s level of transparency since assuming office.
In transcript provided by Fox, one angry American stated, “He doesn’t answer any questions. I honestly just don’t think he’s in charge of the country.”
Another American named Kerry actually gave Biden the benefit of doubt and explained, “I think we still get all the information we need to. Maybe he just isn’t looking for the spotlight as much as others may have.”
President Biden’s decision to skip a formal news conference during his recent four-day visit to Ireland has caused the White House press corps to express their frustration. The press corps is concerned with the President’s limited number of press conferences, as he has only held 23 since taking office. In comparison, his predecessor President Trump had 41, President Obama had 53, and President Bush had 45 press conferences by this point in their respective administrations.
Another upset American simply said, “Nobody really knows what’s going on anymore.“
During a press conference on Monday, reporters confronted President Biden about his administration’s perceived lack of transparency. One reporter even questioned whether the administration was intentionally shielding the president from their questions, suggesting that they were attempting to prevent him from being held accountable.
Biden’s press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre fired back at the reporter and said, “Absolutely not. Absolutely not.”
“Certainly the president, many times, has stood in front of all of you, has taken questions on his own because he wanted to see what was on your minds. . . . That has happened multiple times, many times, during this administration. And that will certainly continue to be. When it comes to a formal press conference, I don’t have anything to share with you at this time,” she added.
Despite his limited engagement with reporters, President Biden did take time to answer questions from elementary school-aged children of U.S. Embassy staff during his visit to Dublin on Wednesday.