Biden campaign approved questions for the president’s interviews on two black radio shows

CHAPIN, SC (AP) – President Joe Biden his campaign provided lists of approved questions to two radio hosts who did their first interviews with him after his faltering performance in the debateboth hosts said on Saturday.

Biden’s appearances Thursday on black radio shows in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania were his first chances to show he could answer questions and discuss his record after a debate in which the 81-year-old repeatedly struggled to complete sentences and press your case against the Republican donald trump.

Radio host Earl Ingram said Saturday that Biden’s aides contacted him directly for his interview that aired Thursday and sent him a list of four questions in advance, on which there was no negotiation.

“They gave me the exact questions to ask,” Ingram, whose “The Earl Ingram Show” is broadcast statewide on 20 Wisconsin channels, told the Associated Press. “There was no back and forth.”

But while the interviews were part of an effort to restore faith in Biden’s ability not just to govern over the next four years but to run a successful campaign, the revelation instead created questions about whether Biden was capable to act in ad-hoc and improvised moments. after his disastrous debate performance.

Appearing with Ingram earlier on CNN, Andrea Lawful-Sanders — host of “The Source” on WURD in Philadelphia — said she was given a list of eight questions, of which she approved four.

The Biden campaign noted that it is common practice to suggest questions and said it did not make acceptance of questions a prerequisite for the interviews themselves.

Lauren Hitt, a spokeswoman for the Biden campaign, said “it is not an uncommon practice for interviewees to share topics they would prefer,” adding that the questions sent to Ingram and Lawful-Sanders “were relevant to the news of the day,” including Biden’s debate performance and “what he delivered to Black Americans.”

She also pointed to a Virginia TV station saying the Trump campaign canceled an interview after the debate after the station’s reporter refused to agree to the conditions of her questions. The Trump campaign did not immediately return a message seeking comment about his interviewing practices or whether such appearances were canceled over the issue.

Biden argued on Ingram’s show that much more than his own political future was in danger, saying: “The stakes are really high. I know you know this. For democracy, for freedom… for our economy, everyone is at stake.”

Ingram asked four questions in his 18-minute interview. He asked if Biden could “talk about some accomplishments that we may or may not be familiar with about your record, especially here in Wisconsin,” what was at stake for black voters in the election, what Biden would say to people who believe in your vote doesn’t matter, and if he could address his debate performance and a remark Trump made during the debate about people crossing the border and accepting what he called “black jobs.”

“I didn’t have a good debate. It’s 90 minutes on stage. Look what I’ve done in 3.5 years,” Biden said in answering the final question before speaking for several minutes about Trump, the economy and veterans’ issues.

Since the interview with Biden, Ingram said all six phone lines of his weekday broadcast have been flooded with people wanting to weigh in on whether Biden should drop out of the race, estimating that more than two-thirds want Biden to continue.

When asked about the set list of questions, Ingram – who has been in radio for 15 years and said he doesn’t consider himself a journalist – said the idea of ​​being given a set list of questions for a guest gave him pause, but also presented an opportunity to perhaps unique in his career.

“I probably never would have accepted, but this was an opportunity to talk to the president of the United States,” he said.

___

Meg Kinnard can be contacted at