Joe Biden and Shia Al-Sudani, the prime minister of Iraq, had a quick photo session in front of reporters on Monday to talk about their bilateral meeting.
Even for those really brief statements, as we pointed out, Biden needs note cards. He struggled and stumbled through it even when he read everything in his notes. While the prime minister of Iraq was speaking, he also impolitely looked at his watch. When reporters attempted to ask questions at the end of his remarks, his staff promptly dismissed them.
However, it was a bit late since, as you can see, photographers were able to get a copy of his cheat sheet during the photo op, and it is absurdly, embarrassingly comprehensive. It is rather awful that he is following a script exclusively.
On the script cheat sheet, there was even a stage directive in all caps that told him when to pause so that the translator could finish translating. Here is the video of his remarks, where you can see him going in that direction.
Considering that he has previously used the teleprompter to read the stage directions, I guess we should consider ourselves fortunate that he refrained from doing so today. You can tell there is a serious issue when you have to tell him when to pause for a translation. Without a script, he cannot function. So, who is this chicken outfit in the White House really operated by?
This was Biden’s first public statement upon his forced return, stumbling, to the White House from his beach house vacation before Iran attacked Israel.
In the meantime, the prime minister of Iraq spoke spontaneously and without notes, just like any other person would.
Biden — slurring as he reads directly from his pre-written notes — takes a victory lap over Iran’s attack on Israel pic.twitter.com/49LHHNVpUm
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) April 15, 2024
In the past, Biden was found in possession of cheat sheets, which even alarmed contributors when they discovered he was using them at an event when people were meant to be mingling and striking up conversations spontaneously. They disclosed that at a February event, he had the notes and had reviewed questions.
With all of that, what must the Iraqi leader think of Biden? What are our allies’ general opinions? Particularly considering that Biden frequently throws them under the bus with regard to Israel, which is what got us into this current problem with Iran. This cannot in any way be comforting, in my opinion.
Author: Blake Ambrose
