Biden Administration Aide Discusses President's Press Office Visits and Travel

Interactions with President Biden

• 💡 Andrew Bates, former Senior Deputy Press Secretary, states he saw President Biden frequently, particularly during travel and when accompanying him to the Hill for advancing priorities.
• 📌 While not part of the official pool, Bates was a staffer who often moved with the President to various sites.

Frequency of Press Office Visits

• 🎯 Bates estimates President Biden visited the press office "not very often," perhaps only a couple of times a year.
• 📈 The frequency of these visits was perceived to be most common during the first and last years of Biden's term.

Travel and Campaign Events

• ✈️ Bates has been on Air Force One many times, estimating over 35 occasions.
• 🚗 Travel with the President varied, including trips to Delaware, official events, political events, and vacations, such as Nantucket for Thanksgiving 2022.
• 🏠 Bates has been to the exterior of the President's Rehoboth beach house and has been to the Wilmington house but not inside.
• 🗓️ During the 2020 campaign, Bates did not attend fundraisers due to being based at headquarters or working from home post-COVID.
• 📍 For the 2024 campaign, Bates attended fundraisers in an official capacity, primarily in Maryland and Virginia, as White House reporters and staff travel with the President.