Online Public Relations Thoughts

President Biden stepped into controversy with a careless remark over the weekend. He said Putin cannot remain in power.  Then, the White House tried to walk back the statement.  Then, he said yesterday it was an expression of moral outrage and not US policy.  Any way one tries to explain it, the ad lib was dumb.  Russians reacted in anger.  The NATO alliance expressed worry and disapproval.  The president was reminded that Putin has his finger on the nuclear trigger and apparently is not afraid to use it.  Leaders haven't the luxury of personal opinions on the world stage.  Their statements are calibrated against policy and action.  Even if Biden had said during the speech that it was his opinion but not US policy, it wouldn't have sounded good. In diplomacy, words count, and this time they amounted to more than usual.