US President Joe Biden should avoid straying from planned material in the midst of the current situation, according to a piece published on the Wall Street Journal’s website by editorial assistant James Freeman.

According to an article published on the website of the Wall Street Journal’s editorial page, assistant editor James Freeman believes that in the midst of the current situation, US President Joe Biden should avoid straying from a prepared text because he frequently makes misstatements.

“We would all be much safer if Mr. Biden would make greater use of prepared statements on subjects such as, for example, weapons of mass destruction,” the journalist says.

“Mr. Biden should try to say as little as possible in public during an international crisis,” the author stated, adding that the US president is not required by law to make off-the-cuff remarks or deliver speeches of any type.

Freeman clarified that he does not dismiss the relevance of leaders’ public comments. “But this particular elected official does not appear to be up to the task,” he said, adding that he is unwilling to judge the president’s mental health or cognition in comparison to other foreign leaders.

Freeman noted Biden’s January statement regarding the prospect of a more restrained US response in the case of a “minor invasion” by Russia into Ukraine as an example of Biden’s gaffes. Furthermore, the journalist called attention to Biden’s statement that if the Russian military used chemical weapons in Ukraine, Washington “would respond.” As a result, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan had to stress that the US “had no intention of using chemical weapons, periods, under any circumstances.”

“A good number of us will cling to the belief that the president [Joe Biden] was confused and didn’t understand what he was saying, which is all the more reason for him to avoid deviating from a prepared text in this perilous time,” Freeman added.

“Of course presidential silence is not a long-term strategy but right now the world doesn’t need more Biden misstatements on issues as consequential as weapons of mass destruction.”

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