Biden Dodging Press Sets a ‘Dangerous Precedent’

[I]n conferences with Vice President Harris and different administration officers, the writer of The Times targeted as a substitute on a larger precept: That systematically avoiding interviews and questions from main information organizations doesn’t simply undermine an vital norm, it additionally establishes a harmful precedent that future presidents can use to keep away from scrutiny and accountability.

That is why Mr. Sulzberger has repeatedly urged the White House to have the president sit down with The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, CNN and different main impartial information organizations that hundreds of thousands of Americans depend on to know their authorities.

Reporters with the New York Times additionally disputed a current report from POLITICO saying that writer A.G. Sulzberger mentioned in a personal remark that “only an interview with a paper like the Times can verify that the 81-year-old Biden is still fit to hold the presidency.”

“I’ve never heard AG say anything like that nor anyone else at the @nytimes,” Peter Baker, chief White House correspondent on the Times, wrote on X. “It’s just not the way it works. AG wants us to cover this president — and every president — as fully, fairly and aggressively as we can because that’s our role. That’s true regardless of whether we get an interview. AG takes our responsibility very seriously and is a complete straight shooter.”

Agreed. I’ve by no means heard AG say something like that nor anybody else on the @nytimes. It’s simply not the best way it really works. AG desires us to cowl this president — and each president — as totally, pretty and aggressively as we are able to as a result of that is our function. That’s true no matter whether or not… https://t.co/4eY1T5kWrb

— Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) April 25, 2024