President Biden asked permission from his staff if he could answer questions from the press Monday, fueling further speculation the 81-year-old incumbent has instructions about what he can say.
“Am I allowed to take any questions?” Biden said, looking around the New Hampshire Democratic headquarters in Manchester at the conclusion of his remarks there during a campaign stop.
“Anybody here a sta–” the president went on, apparently about to say “staff” before trailing off, as the crowd laughed.
A Biden staffer quickly interjected, “Thank you, press,” before the camera feed covering the event cut out.
This isn’t the first time Biden — who has held the fewest formal interviews and press conferences than any modern president — has asked if he could take questions.
He frequently says he will get “in trouble” for answering unauthorized questions and uses note cards with prepared statements from handpicked reporters.
Biden first made reference to his staff attempting to control him back in 2021 during a press conference.
“You guys are bad. I’m not supposed to be answering all these questions,” Biden said at the time. “I’m supposed to leave, but I can’t resist your questions.”
People close to Biden have attempted to stop the president from going off script throughout his administration.
Reporters who have covered the president at the White House know that there are several protection measures put in place to prevent Biden from saying anything out of turn — including first lady Jill Biden making sure to hold his hand when they travel together on Marine One, making the chances of him stopping at the press rope unlikely.
The first lady fumed after the president was allowed to answer questions for two hours during his first press conference, asking, “Why didn’t anybody stop that?” according to a book by New York Times correspondent Katie Rogers.
Biden was also stopped from answering questions about Afghanistan at the White House Easter Egg Roll in April 2022 when one of his staffers — dressed in an Easter Bunny costume — interjected and led him away.
Biden’s critics have speculated his team attempts to control his speech because of his frequent gaffes, some of which they say are because of his elderly age.
The White House has insisted that Biden frequently interacts with the press and does not have to take a mental acuity test despite concerns from voters and a damning report from the Department of Justice claiming Biden has a “poor memory.”
“The president proves every day [in] how he operates and how he thinks — by dealing with world leaders, by making difficult decisions on behalf of the American people — whether it’s domestic or national security,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said after Biden completed his annual physical, referencing the report from the president’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor.