Rep. Jody Hice on Biden bolting from speeches, ignoring issues: He 'is trying to live in a fantasy world'

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Lawmakers, media analysts weigh in on why President Biden often bolts from the press

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said Biden runs from the media because his team is 'making the decisions'

ORLANDO, Fla. - Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., and media analysts tried to put their finger on why President Biden often walks away without taking questions after speeches, most recently following remarks on the unfolding crisis in Ukraine.

Following his speech on the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in August, Biden was given the nickname "Walkaway Joe" for ignoring reporters' questions. He continued the trend in subsequent remarks on consecutive poor jobs reports and the rise in inflation.   

In his first speech on the crisis unfolding in eastern Ukraine following Russia's invasion, Biden made a few remarks and again left the podium without taking questions.          

President Joe Biden speaks about Ukraine in the East Room of the White House (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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Blackburn remarked on the president's frequent abrupt exits and non-answers at the 2022 Conservative Political Action Conference.   

"The tendency does seem to be, he says a prepared skit, and removes himself and leaves answering questions to his team and fleshing out at a deeper level, his position on issues," Blackburn told Fox News Digital.    

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 30: Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday, September 30, 2020 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. (Photo by Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images) (Photo by Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images)

"I think part of that, in my opinion, part of that needs to come because you have people around him that are making the decisions instead of the president making the decisions," she said.  

Biden was mocked last June when he admitted at the outset of his press conference in Geneva he would only be calling on reporters from a prepared list. 

"I’ll take your questions, and as usual, folks, they gave me a list of the people I’m going to call on," Biden said before meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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During a visit to the National Response Coordination Center at FEMA headquarters last August as Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc on Louisiana, Biden similarly declared he wasn’t "supposed to take any questions."

"I’m not supposed to take any questions, but go ahead," Biden said. He declined to answer when a reporter asked about Afghanistan.       

A Ukrainian serviceman stands in an observation point near the frontline village of Krymske, Luhansk region, in eastern Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 19, 2022. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda) ((AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda))

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"He is not capable of - I think we all realize - Biden is not at his best, by any stretch," Hice told Fox News Digital. "And we need a cognitive test, quite frankly, to see if he's capable of leading the United States of America."

Hice said he "fully anticipates" that Biden will not address "any of the problems he has created," which the congressman listed, in part, as the crisis on the southern border, the stark rise in crime, and "dismal foreign policy."

"All of these things he's just going to turn a blind eye to, just as he does to the press when they ask him difficult questions," Hice continued. "He walks away from the truth and somehow is trying to live in a fantasy world that no one else but himself is living in." 

The Media Research Center's Dan Gainor said the issue also lies with the president's delivery.

"No matter how much the media pretend, it’s obvious that Biden is struggling even to give his written remarks," Gainor told Fox News Digital. "When his handlers let him speak to the press after he repeatedly hid in the White House basement, Biden created a huge scandal that emboldened Putin to invade Ukraine. They clearly don’t trust him to speak without some puppeteer writing his script."

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Journalists have at times shared their frustration with the president. A CBS News correspondent pointedly asked the president in November, "When will you answer our questions, sir?," regarding a recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders?" 

In Biden's second speech on the crisis in Ukraine, he did field a few questions, but reporters noted some of them still went unanswered.    

"The fact that he's having trouble dealing with the press that is doing so much to try to help him, does not bode well," The Federalist's Mollie Hemingway told Fox News Digital, saying the media often gave Biden passes on his "limitations."

"Yet he still has this anger and hostility and temper, even with this friendly press," she added. "It makes you wonder what he would do if he had an actual press corps to deal with."

Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report. 

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