They have to do this to prevent Biden from exposing himself.
As President Joe Biden gears up for his re-election bid, his campaign is adopting a strategy of saying less while aiming for a more focused and impactful message, according to Biden aides.
This “less-is-more” approach prioritizes quality over quantity in the president’s public appearances. TJ Ducklo, the senior adviser for communications in the Biden campaign, explains, “There’s a strategic advantage in distilling your message to the three or four most compelling reasons why President Biden should be re-elected.”
The strategy not only aims to sharpen Biden’s message but also seeks to minimize the potential for verbal missteps, which have occurred in longer, off-script moments. Biden’s shorter, crisper remarks are part of a broader shift towards smaller, more intimate settings, believed by his team to be more effective than large rallies.
Some advisers have even proposed replacing prepared speeches entirely with less scripted interactions and punchier digital content, acknowledging the changing nature of information consumption by today’s electorate.
While Biden has made efforts to streamline his speeches, occasional deviations from the script still occur. Despite this, aides recognize the importance of longer, issue-specific speeches at strategic moments to contrast with his opponent and communicate comprehensive policy positions.
The campaign aims to refine a more concise stump speech for Biden as the pace of the campaign intensifies later in the summer. This approach mirrors the trajectory of Biden’s campaign in 2020, which saw a reduction in speech length as momentum built towards the election.
Ultimately, while shorter speeches may reduce the likelihood of mistakes, they do not guarantee flawless delivery, as Biden’s penchant for going beyond prepared remarks occasionally persists.
