President Biden increasingly relies on these notecards across various settings, from press conferences to private events with Democratic donors.
At the age of 81, Biden’s practices include using notecards detailed with directions for his public appearances. However, this habit extends beyond the public eye, as it’s reported by sources such as Axios that these written aids are also a staple during more intimate, private gatherings with party fundraisers.
“He’s always been an extemporaneous speaker, and he spoke off-the-cuff. Not scripted at all,” Fred Hochberg, a donor who attended a recent fundraiser in Manhattan, told Axios. “I asked him about immigration and the border, and he talked about what’s going on.”
The structure of President Biden’s fundraisers typically begins with him addressing the audience and the press—albeit without the presence of news cameras. This introduction often employs a teleprompter, which wasn’t available at a recent San Francisco event. Here, the President notably deviated from scripted comments, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin in a manner that caught attention.
Once the initial remarks conclude, the events become private, with the press asked to leave. During these segments, Democratic donors have the opportunity to interact with President Biden through a Q&A session. These questions, while screened by his team in advance, lead the President to refer to pre-prepared notes provided by staff.
Feedback from attendees at these closed-door fundraisers has been mixed. Some express concern over the President’s perceived dependency on written material during discussions about policies and topics that presumably fall within his expertise. Conversely, others commend the depth of his communications during these engagements.
