Read previewAt a recent closed-door fundraiser, President Joe Biden had to rely on note cards prepped by his staff to provide donors with detailed answers on his policy.
But since the advent of mass communication technology and, as a result, an increasing expectation of US leaders to make public addresses, presidents have long relied on note cards and teleprompters to face their constituents.
Even US presidents who had the public reputation of being robust and nimble needed note cards, Kastor said.
John F. Kennedy, who was able to keep his medical problems, including persistent back pain, hidden from the public, used note cards.
Former President Donald Trump, who is now 77, has received flack for relying on note cards albeit for different reasons.
Persons:
—, Joe Biden, Axios, Robert Hur, Calvin Coolidge, of Congress Peter Kastor, Louis, Kastor, John F, Kennedy, Kennedy's, Woodrow Wilson, John Adams, Theodore Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan, Biden, Reagan, …, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, David Frum, George W, Bush's, Bush, Frum, flack, Trump, Chip Somodevilla, attentiveness, Clinton, Obama
Organizations:
Service, Media, Business, of Congress, Washington University, National Archives, White, Trump
Locations:
St, Berlin, Germany, Parkland , Florida, W