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'He allowed Trump to distract': Ex-Jill Biden aide on Joe Biden's first public speech since leaving office

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An ex-aide of previous US first lady Jill Biden has described former president Joe Biden's recent public address, his first since leaving office in January, as one which allowed the US President Donald to "distract" people amid scrutiny over his "botched" tariff policy.

Michael La Rosa , who was Jill Biden's communications director, told The Hill, "Biden’s re-emergence, while it changed very little in the news cycle, provided a detour for the president to distract his cadre of supporters with Biden taunts and blame, giving Fox News nearly 48 hours of fresh new programming, taking editorial aim at the former president instead of the current one"

La Rosa added, "(Joe) Biden's return was a lovely gift for the White House, President Trump and conservative media at a time when they were playing defense and under the kind of heavy scrutiny over the botched tariff policy in ways we haven’t seen since Trump was elected."


He further said though he loves the Bidens "dearly," staff loyalty means there is a "responsibility to provide them with an honest situational awareness."


According to La Rosa, "If they had advisers who had their hand on the pulse of the Democratic Party or national politics, they would have understood the intense level of anger or indifference to them that remains inside our party and isn’t going away anytime soon. It’s a heartbreaking and tragic ending to their time in public life, but it’s also the truth."

A CBS News poll released last week showed 44 per cent approved Trump’s handling of the economy, down 4 per cent from March 30. His overall approval rating also fell in the survey, from 53 per cent in February to 47 per cent in April.

Democratic strategist Brad Bannon said, "The CBS News poll shows Americans have directed their anger about the economy away from Biden and redirected it towards Trump. Biden’s appearance takes the spotlight away from the incumbent’s economic malfeasance and the suffering he has caused millions of people in the last three months."

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