With all the attention focused on President Joe Biden’s apparent cognitive failings, it’s worth remembering that the modern presidency is as much about the people around the president as it is about the chief executive himself.
If Biden manages to remain the nominee (and he shouldn’t), we will have the rare chance to compare two White House staffs and assess whose was better.
Staff isn’t responsible for the agenda or the direction a White House takes. Staff works on the competency of the decision-making process and the implementation and communication of decisions with Congress, the bureaucracy and the public.
Biden has one of the best White House staffs of my lifetime. We have had many great White House staffs, such the brief Ford years, Reagan’s first term and most of Obama’s eight. Biden’s may well be remembered among those.
This is no accident. Biden has always been staffed well throughout his long career. He recognizes talent, shows loyalty to staff and keeps people around when they are good at their jobs. He also inspires tremendous loyalty in them. Even when they lose an internal debate, they don’t leak. They line up behind the decision and try to make it work. The best White House staff have a “passion for anonymity.” That describes every member of Bidenworld.
In part thanks to this staff, Biden has been able to........