Whither news conferences? Step up to the podium, Mr. President
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President Biden speaks with reporters on the South Lawn of the White House last month.Samuel Corum / New York Times
Each of President Biden’s last 15 predecessors held a solo press conference at this point in their first terms. Biden’s lack of accessibility is drawing criticism from Washington reporters who have plenty of questions to ask him directly. It also challenges his promise of a new era of truth and transparency after four years of an administration that was deficient on each.
It’s not as if there were a dearth of issues to pursue in Biden’s first two months. The rollout of the vaccine, the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill, the air strike on Iran-backed militias in Syria, the administration’s tepid response to a finding that Saudi Arabia’s crown prince authorized the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and Biden’s issuance of executive orders on everything from immigrant rights to the Paris climate agreement cry out for elaboration by the 46th president.