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Sources close to the White House say that Joe Biden is excessively isolated by a close-knit group of advisors.
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Anonymous sources told Politico that the information is carefully collected before it is presented to him.
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The sources accused Biden of being hard to please and that “people are terrified of him.”
As explanations for President Joe Biden’s poor performance during Thursday’s presidential debate continue to emerge, a group of Democrats and White House aides have placed blame on the people running the White House.
Anonymous sources close to the White House told Politico that Biden is isolating himself from his closest aides, leaving him isolated from the rest of his party.
That group of aides includes Biden’s senior adviser, Anita Dunn; her husband, Bob Bauer, Biden’s personal attorney; and Biden’s former chief of staff, Ron Klain, and others.
A senior administration official told Politico: “He’s not taking advice from anyone other than his few top advisers, and it’s becoming a real firestorm as he becomes increasingly isolated from their efforts to keep the situation under control.”
According to Politico sources, the aide gives him information and advice that he responds to positively and ignores the rest.
A source close to Biden’s campaign told Politico: “When I talk to Anita and I ask, ‘What about X?’ she’s quick to say, ‘The president’s not going to do that. Not a chance.'”
Another source at Politico reported that people who express their displeasure are typically not invited to the next phone call or meeting.
A senior administration official Politico spoke to also accused Biden of being unpleasant to be around when briefed, saying aides work hard to curate information for briefings so that he doesn’t get irritated by it.
“It’s like, ‘You can’t record that, it’ll make him angry,’ or ‘Put that in, he’ll like that,'” the official told Politico. “It’s a Rorschach test, not a briefing.”
““It’s very difficult and people are terrified of him,” the official added.
The White House has denied claims that Biden is “isolated,” telling Politico that he regularly gets input from multiple sources and has eight to 10 people at briefings.
Others have criticized Biden’s top advisers
The anonymous aides aren’t the only ones blaming Biden’s top advisers.
Democratic megadonor John Morgan echoed those sentiments, telling Politico that he believes the president has a “clique” of close aides.
“I think he misplaced his trust in these three people, and I think that’s been the case from the beginning,” Morgan told Politico.
Morgan also went to X on Sunday to express his dissatisfaction with the employees.
“Biden has been fooled by the worth of Anita Dunn and her husband for too long. They must go…TODAY,” he wrote.
Biden’s family members also blame his poor performance in the debate on those close to him. They allegedly did not prepare him sufficiently to go on the attack, Politico reported earlier.
Representatives for Biden did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.
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