MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell questioned on air Monday whether President Biden made a mistake in surrounding himself with a group of top advisers “all white men in their 60s” ahead of Thursday’s CNN presidential debate.
Mitchell made the comments during an interview with Adrienne Elrod, a senior spokesperson for Biden’s reelection campaign, who appeared on “The Andrea Mitchell Report” to discuss her perspective ahead of the highly competitive race. Expected showdown Between Biden and former President Trump.
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U.S. President Joe Biden and then-Chief of Staff Ron Klain arrive at a welcoming event for Zients in the East Room of the White House on February 1, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
At the end of the interview, Mitchell brought up a recent New York Times article that detailed the advisers Biden has come to rely on to stay in the White House. The article, headlined “Insider: The Three Core Members of Biden’s Brain Trust,” listed former White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, longtime Biden adviser Mike Donilon, and former Senator Ted Kaufman as key members of Biden’s inner circle.
“You have profiles of the president’s three closest advisers, his longest-serving advisers, informal and formal advisers, and they’re all white men in their 60s or older. Former Senator Ted Kaufman is 85 years old. Isn’t that too insular?” Mitchell asked.
Elrod responded by attacking Trump’s border and economic record before defending the president’s top aides.
From left, Deputy Chief of Staff Annie Tomasini, U.S. President Joe Biden, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Bruce Reed and Senior Advisor to the President Michael C. Donilon gather on the White House South Lawn after arriving on Marine One in Washington, DC, USA, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Photographer: Ting Sheng/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I know them well. They are loyal, dedicated public servants with a wealth of experience and were part of a team that really helped implement some major economic policies under President Biden’s first term in the White House,” she told Mitchell.
“They are longtime allies of the president, so they should obviously be involved in debate preparations,” she continued.
Elrod also said the president has “a whole host of other women” surrounding him, including former White House deputy chief of staff Jen O’Malley Dillon and longtime adviser Anita Dunn, who he believes will better prepare him to take on political opponents on live TV.
“He has a team around him that is going to make sure he’s extremely prepared for this debate,” she told Mitchell.
Biden’s secret weapon in previous national debates may again be a factor in his showdown with Trump.
New York Times article Biden has assembled a “diverse group of advisers” ahead of November, but argues that few have “the clout of the three aides who were with him during his last campaign.”
Biden reportedly calls Donilon “multiple times a day” to talk about the latest news and polls, while the New York Times reports that Biden calls Klain “once a week” to work out the “best attacks” to use against Trump in the next debate and that he “seeks out” Kaufman for weekend trips to Delaware.
Andrea Mitchell Tuesday, January 21, 2020 (Photo: Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photobank via Getty Images)
“Though he surrounds himself with a diverse, multigenerational group of campaigners, policy experts and cabinet members, he places his full trust in a small, typically old-fashioned circle of insiders,” the article states.
The Times article is Axios published the article The report cites Democratic strategists and advisers to President Biden who are concerned that Biden’s aides are dictating the direction of the campaign.
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“For many of us watching from the outside, it’s unclear whether the president and his core team recognize the seriousness of the situation and whether they have a plan to resolve it,” a Democratic strategist in contact with the Biden campaign told Axios.
An anonymous official told the outlet that some advisers felt pressured not to speak up in meetings, especially when some of Biden’s most trusted aides were present.
“Even those closer to the center are afraid to be skeptical or question the current policy for fear of being seen as disloyal,” the anonymous official told the media.
“There’s no argument that a change of course is necessary,” the same anonymous official told Axios.
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Biden advisers, who dispute claims by officials and Democratic strategists that they have doubts about the Biden campaign’s November plans, said: “These people are clearly skeptical of Mike. [Klain]”
Fox News’ Jeffrey Clark contributed to this report.
