Biden has done fewer interviews, press conferences than any modern president
Jen Psaki tells President Biden to stop by 'The View' instead of doing a press conference
Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday during an appearance on "The View" that President Biden should sit down for an interview with the co-hosts.
MSNBC host Jen Psaki suggested Monday that President Biden do an interview on ABC's "The View," and argued during her appearance on the daytime talk show that it would be an effective way to reach the American people.
Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin asked Psaki, Biden's former White House press secretary, if the president — who has done fewer formal interviews and press conferences than any of his modern predecessors — should be more accessible to the press.
"When you're communicating from the White House, I mean respect for freedom of speech and freedom of the press is important. But you're also really just trying to communicate with the American people. So my view is he should come on ‘The View’ before he does a press conference," Psaki said.
Psaki said Americans want "real conversations about issues that are happening." She praised the president's recent podcast and radio appearances.
MSNBC host Jen Psaki suggested President Biden sit down with "The View," and argued the interviews he's done have reached broader audiences than a press conference. (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)
"I think press conferences are important, but I also think him doing Howard Stern, that's an interview that reached a broader audience of people. Him talking to the guys from ‘Smartless,’ which is a great podcast," she said. "If you're in the White House, you're not thinking about ‘am I checking the box on doing the most interviews.'"
Psaki said the White House was focusing more on getting Biden's message to the American people.
"So I would say, more Howard Stern, come on ‘The View,’ more ‘Smartless’ conversations where you're having conversations about policy, but they're real ones that people have at their kitchen table," she said.
Co-host Sara Haines agreed and said the interviews Biden has done weren't just "gotcha moments," which she said would occur more often in a press conference.
MSNBC host and former White House press secretary Jen Psaki joins the hosts of "The View" on Monday, May 6, 2024. (Screenshot/ABC)
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"As a citizen, when I watch, I don’t want just the same catch-him moment. I want to know what’s going on and I don’t always get that from a press conference," she said.
Former Presidents Obama and Clinton joined Biden for his interview on the "Smartless" podcast, hosted by actors Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes.
Obama and Clinton had also joined Biden for a campaign event in New York, where the president was asked why it was even necessary to "have half a president" campaigning against former President Trump.
President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US, on Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"Well, a lot has changed. A lot has changed in how you communicate. A lot has changed in information, and so much disinformation out there," Biden responded. "It's hard to communicate even today when you do accomplish some improbable things."
During his interview with Stern, the president said he would be "happy" to debate Trump.
Hanna Panreck is an associate editor at Fox News.
