The White House has prohibited its officials from addressing the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this month as to not appear to be focused on Hillary Clinton’s own campaign, the New York Times reported Sunday.
President Obama endorsed Clinton last month and plans to have his first joint campaign appearance with her Tuesday. The two had to reschedule their campaign event after the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida.
Five members of Obama’s cabinet addressed the convention during the President’s re-election campaign in 2012, according to the Times.
But this year Obama’s chief of staff Denis McDonough wanted to “send a signal about the primacy of the Obama administration’s responsibility to manage the government and serve the American people,” said deputy White House press secretary Jennifer Friedman.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest said it was an effort to “delineate” politics from the White House’s responsibilities.
