WaPo: Opinion: Biden excels at his first news conference. The media embarrass themselves.

[mcar]

Opinion: Biden excels at his first news conference. The media embarrass themselves.
Opinion by
Jennifer Rubin
Columnist
March 25, 2021 at 3:52 p.m. EDT

After weeks of whining, the White House press corps got its first official Biden presidential news conference on Thursday. President Biden used the event to pledge that 200 million covid-19 vaccinations would be administered by the end of his first 100 days, double his original goal. (The administration will reach 100 million shots on Friday, Day 58.) He also announced that a survey showed nearly half of K-12 schools are open full-time for in-person learning. (He expressed confidence it would be more than half by the 100th day, consistent with his goal.) Certainly, that should be near the top of any news coverage....

One reporter mentioned a 9-year-old she had seen at the border and asked if Biden’s messaging was contributing to the problem. No, he responded, again offering a detailed answer about the problems refugees face in their home countries that create the outflow. Prodded with a question about whether overcrowding was “acceptable,” he responded, “C’mon.” Of course it was unacceptable, he said, listing steps he is taking to find more beds for unaccompanied minors. The repeated questions on the same topic were tiresome and a poor use of precious time.

Try as they might to seem “tough,” the media did not succeed in knocking Biden off message. Biden spoke in great detail and length to show not only his mastery of the issues but also to suck tension and conflict out of the room. He simply would not be lured into accepting a false premise devised by Republicans (i.e., that his nice demeanor prompts parents to send kids thousands of miles under deadly conditions). “I’m going to send him on a thousand-mile journey across a desert and up to the United States because I know Joe Biden is a nice guy and he’ll take care of him? What a desperate act to take," he said. "The circumstances must be horrible.”...

The media did not distinguish themselves. By asking about immigration multiple times and echoing the false narrative that Biden had created a “surge," they showed they were more interested in sound bites than actual news. Their failure to ask about the pandemic, the recession, anti-Asian violence, climate change or even infrastructure (Biden had to bring it up himself) was nothing short of irresponsible. They pleaded for a news conference and then showed themselves to be unserious. They never laid a glove on Biden; they did, however, make the case for why these events are an utter waste of the president’s time.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/03/25/biden-excels-his-first-news-conference-media-embarrass-themselves/

[PortTack]

1. BIG NEWS FLASH THEN....media actually gets something right. Goes with truth

At least WaPo!

[Indykatie]

46. Great Article From Jennifer Rubin Who Does Opinion Pieces in WP. She's Always Excellent on Biden.

[onetexan]

70. She's been nice to MoJo sofar because he hasn't given her reason not to be

Damn Lame stream media is out to sensationalize by setting traps for him. MoJo shld have Jen Psaki say to these damn reporters lobbing lame questions at him that well given the asses they've made of themselves they dont deserve to have him do another press conference. She shld also remind them the con used it as a tool to repeatedly bash & demean them as enemies of the people, and do they want that instead?

[Native]

2. Thanks, mcar!

[mcar]

41. YW

[doc03]

3. So far Biden has exceeded my expectations

he was always known for his gaffs.

[speak easy]

5. 'gaffs'

I have not heard that word for some time

[Trueblue1968]

22. there was NOT a single "Biden Gaff" .

there was NOT a single "Biden Gaff" ....He's an intelligent man and didn't spew crap like "The Former GUY" did on every one of his speaking occasions.

[speak easy]

27. It says a lot about our political culture that

'I am a very stable genius' was not called a 'gaffe'.

[ShazzieB]

53. It wasn't a gaffe, and here's why.

A gaffe is "an unintentional act or remark causing embarrassment to its originator; a blunder." (https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/gaffe)

There is absolutely nothing unintentional about Chump's ridiculous claims regarding his intellect, including "I am a very stable genius." He says those things deliberately, because he believes them and thinks bragging about his "very, very large brain" (remember that one?) is a perfectly reasonable thing to do. He has never appeared to be embarrassed about having said them for the same reasons. This is his narcissism in action.

[DENVERPOPS]

88. Couldn't agree more TB

Get rid of the pond scum that swamps the press conference pseudo journalists, or tip off Biden so at least he never calls on them...

[brush]

6. Obviously that rep was way overblown.

[Cha]

10. Not to me he wasn't.. yeah the m$m

smeared it in.. like they went after Al Gore.

[mcar]

42. The gaffe thing was always overblown

He is a skilled politician and, obviously, has a thorough grasp of the issues.

[PatSeg]

55. Biden was not really all that gaff prone

He was labeled that way by the mainstream media for many years. Whenever he made a mistake, as all people do now and then, they would say, "See, Biden is a gaff machine". It is lazy and unprofessional reporting. Joe Biden was known for many things for decades, but somehow the gaffes were all they focused on. If they applied the same standard to all politicians of both parties, you'd find DC is full of "gaffe machines".

That's okay, Biden got the last word. He is President of the United States in spite of them and yes, he is exceeding lots of expectations.

[MyOwnPeace]

56. Such a GREAT statement!

"That's okay, Biden got the last word."

And he can chuckle or laugh himself to sleep every single night! He had run twice before and was knocked out rather early. And this last run was not a cake-walk either. Some were writing him off before his sweep of a few states starting with South Carolina. That week's primaries really changed the game for him and how others looked at his chances.

And now he is just kickin' ass with the old memes that had followed him and the Repubs are throwing at him but finding that he's doing such a fantastic job that he's winning support from over 60% of all Americans - the "right answer" for our times.

Go, Joe!!!!

[PatSeg]

65. Oh yes, it is like a Hollywood ending

The media has written Joe off so many times, rarely giving him a chance to show who he really is. He has every right to be bitter about how the media has treated him over the years. Yet he stood up there with grace and dignity, treating them with far more respect than they've ever shown him.

Over the years, so many journalists and pundits underestimated Biden, writing him off as the "also ran" guy, who just couldn't quite get there. Now he's sitting in the White House making history as a highly unlikely transformational President. The history books will remember him well and already presidential historians are giving glowing reports about their interactions with him. There was a meeting in the White House with Jon Mecham, Michael Beschloss, Doris Kearns Goodwin, and others, and Michael Eric Dyson was absolutely beaming when he spoke about it last night. I wish I could remember what all he said (he was on Lawrence O'Donnell's show), but I've never heard Dyson talk like that about anyone before. That man in the meeting is the man historians will write about.

[Hekate]

60. The "gaffe machine" was always and merely a slur, a way of dismissing the man...

It was a lazy meme.

[Skittles]

4. cannot be

I heard Joe is feeble, has dementia, cannot complete a sentence, etc......very strange hearing that sort of criticism after four years of DONALD FUCKING TRUMP.

[mcar]

44. Idiots wanted a SCANDAL!!11

As expected, they asked the same questions over and over. Given how abused they were by the former administration, their attitudes were nonsense.

[Hortensis]

7. We saw only part, but Rubin's harsh assessment does not contradict

what we did see, and I'm sorry to hear it. Biden had to use some obviously repetitive questions to discuss a range of topics, like infrastructure, climate change, democracy versus autocracy. And he offered useful information for intelligent viewers to consider for context in understanding, such as that 1 out of 5 American roads is in poor condition. Imagine, informing Americans instead of just reciting catchphrases for them to parrot. We liked what we heard from him.

[mcar]

49. He did a good job bringing up what they didn't

[Hortensis]

50. Regrettable that he had to be prepared for that, but he was. :)

[jaxexpat]

68. MMM'Okay, But lets give credit where it's due.

I mean, in the face of repetitive questions about....issues and stuff, Trump was always able to redirect the conversation back to his message, too.

Frinstance:
He rarely failed to remind us that he was elected by a landslide, an ELECTORAL landslide, at that.
Nor could he be dissuaded from explaining that his inauguration crowd was an attendance record event never seen before..
He gave detailed analysis regarding his remarkable huge brain power even where inappropriate or awkward.
Even when he had 4 years to fix, it the mess he inherited was SOOOOO bad that it actually got worse and we were lucky he was in charge or it would be the biggest disaster the likes of which nobody could ever imagine and all the Democrat's fault.
Of course, Trump was merely human, losing his temper, disparaging his detractors and their pesky queries. That's when his true mastery of the deal really shone, commit the crime and defer the fine.

.....and all that subtle conversational craftsmanship took place despite the headwind of fake news.

So, of course, this may be sarcasm. I just report. You decide.

[Hortensis]

69. Lol. Compelling argument and of course spot on.

Biden will have a long way to go to demonstrate that degree and breadth of mastery. Looks like the fake news headwind may be picking up. At least that's how I interpret turning off NBC evening news in disgust twice in a row.

[WA-03 Democrat]

8. All true!

The best part was “why have you not already ready registered to run in 2024?” Biden come back was “he(Trump) had to” and something around the concept of doing the job and solving problems first were more important.

Yamiche questions and the guy from WSJ I thought were good.

Biden’s multilevel working knowledge of the issues, resources and fixes was impressive. We are in GO mode that was for sure.

[Cha]

9. IOW.. business as usual with

the DC press corp.

Good on the WaPo Calling them out so Brilliantly!

Mahalo for this, mcar

[Hekate]

11. Jennifer Rubin of the WaPo got this exactly right. It was a pleasure to listen to Biden...

...who is
* a gentleman
* patient (up to a point)
* highly intelligent
* in complete command of all the facts
* gives very substantive answers
* able to instruct at length (for which he apologizes, & he shouldn’t)

I could go on, but suffice it to say, Ms Rubin is correct.

Regarding crossing the desert, which is seasonal, he made a comparison to his great-great- ancestors deciding to take a “coffin ship” to America. They didn’t want to leave Ireland, but the situation was desperate. (For those who don’t know, they were called coffin ships because of the large numbers of passengers who died on the way to America, generally of typhus.) Improve conditions in their home countries, and migration will slow down.

Regarding his comments on foreign policy, China in particular — they were substantive. Did anyone even listen? Take notes? Care? What he said was actually quite important, and shows he has been paying attention for decades and is quite up to the minute.

As it is, I turned off the tv shortly after he left the podium, and will wait for Rachel’s take on it tonight. I hope she will talk about foreign policy, as it is right up her alley.

[calimary]

17. And Jennifer Rubin is no liberal Democrat.

She got this right. And she got HIM right, too.

I love our President! He makes me proud, once again, to be an American. Just imagine: a President who doesn’t make you cringe with embarrassment, or shake your head in disgust.

[George II]

21. He was TOO patient in some cases. Kaitlyn Collins' question were the stupidest. Embarrassing.

[mchill]

43. I was shocked at her question

She is great at thinking on her feet and was recently promoted to the position she is in. How will CNN defend THAT?

[Laura PourMeADrink]

67. I wonder if they are rewarding the ones who trump approved

to stay in pool? Like they are afraid to bring back the true journalists now? The ones trump revoked privileges on?

[mcar]

51. Just inane, George

"Are you going to run for re-election?" "Will VP Harris be on the ballot with you?"

Seriously? Less than 3 months in?

[Totally Tunsie]

59. Kaitlan Collins was NOT the reporter asking Biden

Last edited Fri Mar 26, 2021, 01:10 AM - Edit history (1)

about his plans for 2024. It was actually Nancy Cordes, who is CBS News chief White House correspondent.

As reported by CBS:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-run-for-reelection-in-2024/

"My plan is to run for reelection. That's my expectation," Mr. Biden said in response to a question from CBS News chief White House correspondent Nancy Cordes. The president added that he "would fully expect" that Vice President Kamala Harris will remain on the presidential ticket, and called her "a great partner."

Kaitlan is being done a disservice by this rumor.

Personally, I'm happy to see her success. She's earning it, IMO.

[mcar]

75. Collins did ask Biden about reelection

Cordes followed up.

[Totally Tunsie]

76. It was actually the other way around.

Cordes was the first to ask about re-election, with Kaitlan following up about possibly running against tRump.

The question Kaitlan originated was concerning the Senate filibuster.

https://www.axios.com/biden-press-conference-highlights-35e64499-f099-45db-9c28-b240b0047e0d.htm

On the filibuster: Biden told CNN's Kaitlan Collins that he agrees with President Obama that the Senate filibuster is a "relic of the Jim Crow era," but refused to say that it should be abolished.

snip

On 2024: The 78-year-old Biden told CBS News' Nancy Cordes it is his "plan" and "expectation" to run for re-election, and that he "fully expects" Vice President Harris to be his running mate.

He added that he has "no idea" whether he'll be running against former President Trump in 2024, or whether there will even be a Republican Party by that time.
(This was in response to KC's follow-up.)

[mcar]

78. OK, I got it backwards

The fact that she felt she needed to follow up on an obviously inane question that Pres. Biden had already answered makes it even worse.

[True Blue American]

73. That had to be

The dumbest question of the day and she repeated it. The News needs better Reporters than those who think a silly gotcha question is smart.

Not one Covid question. Talk about Trump and his Made up reality most of them live in that world. A couple were seasoned Professionals.

[Joinfortmill]

35. Agree with every word.

[louis-t]

12. And not once did he say

"you're a terrible reporter". Isn't it nice to have an adult in charge again?

[George McGovern]

16. YES IT IS, loutis-t!

Mr. Biden showed respect to reporters instead. Thank you for pointing this out.

[gratuitous]

20. I heard he didn't hand-wave away a reporter and call them "fake news"

What sort of behavior is that for the President of the United States?

But I'm sure all the news outlets will note that with his press conference today, President Biden matches the total number of press conferences the former guy held during his first year in office.

I especially like President Biden's response to the dumbass re-election question. The former guy hadn't even taken his hand off the Bible when he announced his candidacy in 2020. There was some initial surprise expressed in a couple of corners of the media, but it didn't take long for every media pundit, commentator, talking head, and various hacks to simply conclude that this was the new normal and that nothing unseemly had just happened.

[Texin]

71. Nor did he say, "You're a nasty woman" with his customary sneer.

[Harker]

13. The world would be a much better place if reporters

focused on reporting the news rather than trying to make it.

[liberalmediaaddict]

25. Exactly

DC reporters need to start reporting the actual news instead of letting Republican talking points drive every news cycle. Focus on the issues all Americans are concerned with not just Fox News pundits & their viewers.

[tavernier]

14. They are not an utter waste of the President's time...

They give the citizens an opportunity to see what a brilliant person is captaining our ship. Screw the media.

[mcar]

52. I'll take that good point

and laugh the next time they start whinging about how long it's been.

[SunSeeker]

15. K & R

[hibbing]

18. Driving the narrative

My racist neighbor is already parroting the corporate media and he is terrified of 50,000 Mexicans crossing the border with Covid.

Peace

[csziggy]

29. Has your racist neighbor gotten his covid vaccination yet?

Or is he one of the right wing deniers that refuses to?

If he has not gotten it, tell him that the covid carrying migrants are the reason he should rush right out and get it for his own protection.

Hey, maybe that is a way to get the RepuQs to get vaccinations - threaten them with "50,000 Mexicans crossing the border with Covid."

[hibbing]

33. He just can't help himself

Yeah, him and his wife got their vaccines. I used to chat with the guy, but like all these Trumpsters, they just can't help themselves from talking about politics. Go to talk about his garden, two minutes later....politics. I rarely talk to him anymore, but I am not dealing with the noise and racism anymore.

Peace

[csziggy]

36. Yeah, I get it

I know people like that - one of my husband's D&D player-friends. I told him over and over that I do not want to hear his right wing beliefs and he wouldn't pay attention. So now when he calls I don't answer. The only reason I don't block his number is that my husband does talk to him about their games.

I am getting tempted to block him, though - he's been calling ever damn night at dinner time. My husband says it's because he has not friends (surprise!) and even some of the guys that play the games with him and my husband can't stand him.

[NewHendoLib]

19. how the media has fallen as the need to fill up the many options, 24

hour news cycle and create controversy to generate eyeballs.

They may be pretty faces (some), but they largely don't distinguish themselves with intellect.

[Roc2020]

24. They really thought a President that has

been around politics for half a century would be scared to face the media?? As the President said "where do you people come from" lol.

[LittleGirl]

26. Don't read the trending Twitter threads!

They were not watching the same press conference I was.
I saw a nice, ethical person, taking questions, checking his notes and stammering on a few words like most people with a stutter do in situations like that. Maybe the press could remind everyone that criticizing someone with a stutter is frowned upon.

They saw some senile guy that was given questions beforehand and failing to read the answers. He was not the President but an imposter!

Really? That’s what they took away from that?
Wow. They are drama queens because that’s not what I saw at all.

I saw an intelligent thoughtful person doing the best he can under these awful sickening circumstances we live in. Virus, death, vaccines and people ask if he’s running in 3 years.
Please. !

[Treefrog]

28. I wasn't able to watch and I'm very glad to hear this.

Way to go Joe!

[soothsayer]

30. Why was Peter Doocy not allowed to ask Joe Biden why Tom Hanks wore red shoes in a pizza restaurant

Link to tweet

?s=21


Donald J. Drumpf
@RealDonalDrumpf
Why was Peter Doocy not allowed to ask Joe Biden why Tom Hanks wore red shoes in a pizza restaurant in 1975?

[cstanleytech]

31. If these media people actually cared for answers to tough questions

why then did they refuse to ask any from Trump during his entire 4 years of terror?

[Joinfortmill]

32. Spot on.

[spanone]

34. ...

Their failure to ask about the pandemic, the recession, anti-Asian violence, climate change or even infrastructure (Biden had to bring it up himself) was nothing short of irresponsible

[Bristlecone]

37. I watched parts and this assessment is 100% accurate

The media needs to retrain themselves in dealing with a serious POTUS. Otherwise this IS a complete waste of the President's time. And this President has real shit to do.

[dalton99a]

38. They had a narrative and they thought Biden would cooperate

Good thing he didn't fall for their bullshit

[GoCubsGo]

39. Yep, and even more embarrassing...

At least one of them was obsessed with whether or not he was planning to run again in 2024. FFS!!! Let the man get through more than two months of a four year term before you start worrying about the next election, you schmuck. Always a goddamn horse race with these assholes.

[cilla4progress]

40. Yep.

"Do you plan to run again and ask Kamala to be your VEEP?"

Yet nothing about guns - COVID - other serious pressing issues!

[BobTheSubgenius]

45. The media now has nowhere to hide.

Their bias is out in the open. For WHATEVER reason, so many of them were or are still in the tank for Il Douche. It must be because of the mountain of low-hanging fruit there was in those "halcyon" days.

Does Joseph R Biden make them fearful that they're going to have to actually work for a living? Are they resentful that he doesn't fit into their easy, preconceived mould, the stereotype they have of him?

The Republican's response? The only surprise there is that it is so muted, almost "reasonable" by their standards. Is that the Melanin Factor? Is it not business-as-usual...that there is an element of "Well, he's a Democrat, but at least he's white?" Awfully simplistic, and while it certainly fits part of their ethos, it is way too much like giving up.

This is probably the most complex dynamic I can remember in American Presidential politics. Perhaps it will sort itself out over time, with the GOP getting different marching orders. Perhaps the principals will harden the wobbly bits themselves and the paradigm will make more sense.

Don't get me wrong. The President is doing what he does, and what he does is what he should be doing. In spades.

These lyrics bounce around my head today. Thanks, Gord Downie.

"We'd probably only agree on one thing anyway
That's what the hell is happening here?"

[uponit7771]

48. +1, even the question about Kamala as his running mate was from Q crap

[uponit7771]

47. K&R, some of the questions were just lazy

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

54. The previous pResident was an abomination in countless ways, yet the M$M failed,

in large part, to be anything like as "tough" as his dangerous misbehavior begged for. And with their idiotic and cowardly determination nor to be accused of being "the liberal media," they will always give the Rs a major pass while holding Ds to far higher standards.

[MadMike47]

57. So many second-rate questions. Yamiche

Yamiche Alcindor was very disappointing.

[Hekate]

58. Why? I thought she acquitted herself well, but don't remember exactly what she said...

...as I was caught up in several topics.

[Tarheel_Dem]

61. Many of the "professional" reporters in that room would've been kicked off my high school newspaper.

The woman that asked his intentions for 2024 was the most disappointing of all. Second to that would have to be the so-called "crisis" at the border. If someone dropped in from another planet, they would think JB has been POTUS for 4 years, when in actuality, it hasn't even been 4 months. For an administration, with the shortest runway (no transition) in presidential history, I give them very high marks for what they've accomplished in such a short time.

[mcar]

79. Makes me insane

They whine that there's been no press conference. Then they get one and ask the same questions, over and over.

I don't object to another reporter following up and restating the question to clarify a point. But they just kept asking the same things: the border, the filibuster, after full answers had been given.

Then the inane "are you running in 2024" nonsense.

Then them asking 3 or 4 more questions each.

Then the other reporters complain they didn't get called on. Maybe they should tell their colleagues to stop with the 4 question follow-ups.

[MustLoveBeagles]

87. It was ridiculous

Even my husband was complaining and he was only half listening to it. I'm glad we missed most of it. Joe did a great job in spite of the nonsense.

[BlueMTexpat]

62. Rubin almost sounds

like a Democrat!

Yes, he did and yes, they do.

[betsuni]

63. The ABC reporter was terrible.

[UCmeNdc]

64. K&R

[Wahyee]

72. CNN disappointed as well

The most important subject KC could think of was 2024? We’re barely into his current term. She really wasted her opportunity.

[George II]

66. There were some who asked inane questions and tried gotcha questions, and there was one....

....who, after asking three questions, said "I just have one more question" then went on to ask four or five.

I'm really getting frustrated and angry with the attitude of some members of the "press", thinking they know more than Biden or elected officials, and they should be running the country.

[dalton99a]

74. +1. Now that Biden is president, they want to control the agenda

Fuck them

[mcar]

80. Then the other reporters complained they didn't get called on

[George II]

82. They should be griping to their fellow reporters for monopolizing the time. Alcindor herself...

....seemed to go on for almost 10 minutes and asked five or six questions. Collins also asked four or five (all inane) questions.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

77. I subscribe to The Daily Beast and WaPo.

TDB had a nasty review of the POTUS presser yesterday. Won't share unless you want it. I didn't finish it because it had that "knives out" ring to it.

[mcar]

81. TDB reviewing the reporters or the President?

If they were negative about the president, they obviously didn't watch it.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

83. POTUS

Biden’s First Presser Shows Why He Waited So Long to Have One
JIM EAGLE?!
Matt Lewis

Senior Columnist

[mcar]

84. Oh good gad

[Aussie105]

85. If a 'talk to the press' becomes a series of dumb or 'gotcha' questions

why not scrap them and revert back to regular televised scripted 'talk to the nation' events?

Much better use of Joe's time. He has more serious work to do.

All the real news and fake news could do their slanted interpretations afterwards.