President Biden’s team provided preapproved questions to two radio hosts before their interviews with the President this week. Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host of “The Source” on WURD in Philadelphia, disclosed on CNN that Biden officials had sent her a list of eight questions ahead of her Wednesday interview with the President.

“The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them,” Lawful-Sanders told CNN’s Victor Blackwell. When asked if it was the White House that sent the questions, she confirmed that it was. She explained that she received eight questions and selected four from the list for her interview.

Lauren Hitt, a spokeswoman for the Biden campaign, clarified that campaign aides, not White House officials, provided the questions. Hitt stated that it is “not uncommon” for the campaign to share preferred topics but emphasized that interviewers are not required to adhere to these suggestions. “Hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners,” she said.

However, a person familiar with the campaign’s operations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, revealed that the campaign would no longer offer suggested questions to hosts. This change in policy comes amid scrutiny over the practice of providing preapproved questions.

Lawful-Sanders stressed that she never felt pressured to ask certain questions and chose questions that were most relevant to the Black and brown communities in Philadelphia. “Those questions proved to be exactly what Black and brown communities desired,” she said.

The interviews with radio hosts of shows with large Black audiences were part of a broader campaign effort to reassure the public about President Biden’s mental fitness following concerns raised after a recent debate. Despite these efforts, some Democratic lawmakers, including Representatives Angie Craig of Minnesota and Scott Peters of California, have expressed doubts about Biden’s viability as a candidate.

In contrast, some prominent Democrats, such as California Governor Gavin Newsom, have shown their support for Biden. Newsom campaigned for the President in Pennsylvania on Saturday, emphasizing his backing amidst growing concerns.

During one of the interviews with Lawful-Sanders, President Biden stumbled over his words, mistakenly referring to himself as “the first Black woman to serve with a Black president.” In another interview on “The Earl Ingram Show” in Wisconsin, Biden’s response to a question about the importance of voting was halting and confusing, reflecting his lifelong struggle with stuttering.

CNN’s Victor Blackwell highlighted the similarity of questions asked by both Lawful-Sanders and Ingram, raising concerns about the effectiveness of preapproved questions in demonstrating the President’s capabilities. “If the White House is trying now to prove the vim, vigor, acuity of the President, I don’t know how they do that by sending questions first,” Blackwell commented.

In response to the controversy, the Biden campaign remains defiant, insisting that the President is fit for office. They have scheduled two smaller-scale events in Pennsylvania to showcase Biden’s energy and enthusiasm, aiming to counteract the negative perceptions from his debate performance.