A photographer at the White House on Thursday caught a photo of something that the Biden administration probably would’ve probably liked to keep under wraps.
It’s being called the “Biden cheat sheet,” basically a short list of extremely detailed but simple instructions for Joe Biden to follow when he’s in a public setting or addressing a room full of people.
Commands like, “YOU take YOUR seat” with “you” and “your” capitalized to emphasize to the President that it’s referring to him. It’s a rather jarring glimpse into what it takes to keep Biden on track and prevent his thoughts and actions from wandering off script or ginning up a brand new gaffe.
As the New York Post reports, the instructions gave Biden cues to every part of an event held with wind executives at the White House from when to sit, when to speak, and when to listen:
The prepared instructions for Biden — titled “Offshore Wind Drop-By Sequence of Events” — tell Biden to “enter the Roosevelt Room and say hello to participants.”
Then, the paper says, “YOU take YOUR seat.”
The typed-up note says that after reporters arrive, “YOU give brief comments (2 minutes).”
When reporters depart, “YOU ask Liz Shuler, President, AFL-CIO, a question” and then “YOU thank participants” and “YOU depart.”
Biden’s use of staff notes at events has been embarrassing before, such as last July, when an aide scrawled, “Sir, there is something on your chin.” Biden also held that note so it faced reporters and photographers.
Beyond the sheer humor of the situation, it’s actually quite nerve-wracking that the leader of the free world needs this much coaching and prodding to get through a well-controlled sit-down meeting with friendly visitors in the confines of the White House.
It has long been suspected, and Biden has mentioned a time or two, about what he’s “supposed to be doing” during press conferences or making off-handed comments like, “I’m not supposed to take questions.”
Who knew the situation was actually much more serious and formalized than just aides briefing the President before he walked into a room. There is clearly a fear that Biden will get so tripped up that he needs an instruction set spelled out in extremely simple terms to choreograph small meetings and events.
In this latest episode, it almost looks as if Biden wanted to expose the “cheat sheet” as a swipe at his own staff. Perhaps trying to shame them by exposing their attempts to help control unpredictable situations when Biden may speak off the cuff or talk himself into a dead-end story as he’s prone to do.
Perhaps the other noteworthy part of the story is that a photographer actually took the photo and then shared it, something that wouldn’t have happened six or eight months ago when the media was largely still protecting Biden. Even the fact that this photo and the contents of the “cheat sheet” were released publicly tells you how far this administration has fallen in terms of no longer having friendly media to perform a cleanup.
Biden’s going to need a cheat sheet to talk his way out of the inflation mess his policies have created but it will take much more than a single three-by-five card.
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