President Joe Biden stood before the global media cameras in Italy on Thursday at the start of the G7 conference – back in the spotlight at a time when the White House has avoided questions about Hunter Biden’s guilty verdict.
The G7 summit on Italy’s Adriatic coast comes at a difficult time for the president, just hours after a jury convicted his son in federal court in Wilmington on gun charges.
Nevertheless, the White House has managed to keep reporters at bay through a range of tactics. The first was in a written statement issued in Biden’s name minutes after the verdict was handed down.
The White House canceled a news conference with press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre scheduled for Tuesday just as the news broke, which could have turned into a 40-minute questioning on the subject.
The president then flew to his hometown of Wilmington on a previously unannounced trip, hugging his son on the tarmac and providing an emotional visual of support.
He also spoke with Hunter’s wife Melissa Cohen and son Beau Biden, but a pool of reporters traveling with him were too far away to shout questions, according to the pool.
President Joe Biden was back in the spotlight in Italy for the G7, where he was greeted by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. His only response to his son Hunter’s guilty verdict was a written statement
That meant Wednesday’s flight aboard Air Force One was the first opportunity for a smaller group of reporters to finally get information about how the president and administration were grappling with the historic verdict.
Jean-Pierre tried to head off those questions by reading from Biden’s written statement, in which he said he and first lady Jill Biden “love our son,” and we are so proud of the man he is today, stating he mentioned addiction and said they will “stay forever.” be there for Hunter and the rest of our family.”
As more questions came, Jean-Pierre felt isolated by her own lack of information. “I haven’t spoken to the president about this since the verdict came out,” she told the press.
(That didn’t stop her from making news when she refused to rule out the president commuting Hunter’s sentence, even though he has renounced pardons. “I haven’t talked to the president about this,” she said.) Biden arrived in Italy at night.
The White House hosted a Zoom briefing with national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Thursday morning, but it was centered on foreign policy matters and limited to the more limited group of pool reporters who were with Biden. The wider press corps could call in to listen, but could not ask a question.
Reporters got some heat from the G7 leaders, but Meloni spoke the entire time
Biden arrived in Italy on Wednesday evening
Biden briefly greeted his son Hunter in Delaware after the ruling, but pool reporters were too far away to question him
Hunter BIden was spotted having lunch at a Thai restaurant in LA on Wednesday
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that she had not spoken to Biden about the verdict — meaning she could not comment on his response
At the luxurious Borgo Egnazia resort where the G7 leaders met, Biden was shielded by the turn of events. He greeted Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni warmly and then joined the group of leaders for a brief ‘spray’ at the start of their first meeting.
At that event, Meloni was the only person to speak, and the press was there for a short time, denying the opportunity to investigate Biden.
On Thursday afternoon, a second Biden meeting was open to reporters for a quick “spray,” providing another small opportunity for questions.
The White House has scheduled a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday evening local time.
That event will give members of the press a chance to finally question Biden directly.
But the news conference will be limited by an expected format that allows only two questions from the U.S. side. That forces media members to choose between questions about the stalled ceasefire proposal for Gaza, Ukraine, or the stunning legal developments.
During his latest news conference, Biden reprimanded a reporter who tried to answer a two-part question.
The format, alongside embattled Zelensky struggling to counter Russia’s invasion of his homeland, allows Biden to maneuver away from unwanted questions by pointing to new agreements to support Ukraine for a decade and provide new funds on basis of the interests of seized Russian assets. .