Are Joe Biden’s verbal gaffes HELPING him? Pollsters say president’s numbers go UP when he goes off script and speaks more ‘aggressively’ about issues than his handlers would prefer

Joe Biden's closest aides and biggest donors believe the secret to better polling is more candid commentary and off-script blunders.

The president, 81, who is running after Donald Trump just a few points most polls have him tied in terms of press interactions during his term.

He rarely deviates from the script, and his assistants have gone so far as to prepare note cards for him prior to softball interviews with friendly media.

But now it's an election year and strategists and allies are trying to boost his numbers, which could mean the notoriously gaffe-prone president is allowed to speak his mind.

What some leading donors and fundraisers have said, according to Reutersis that “every time he (Biden) sounds more aggressive or takes an aggressive stance, his (approval) numbers go up.”

Some close to the president say that with election season kicking into high gear, it's time to let Biden be Biden — gaffes and all

The source, a Democratic fundraiser, added that the cautious White House staff is hampering Biden's ability to curry favor with his outspokenness.

“This is the same nervous, cautious Nellie crew that advised Hillary (Clinton) to stay informed,” they said. “Biden needs to come out and tell people what he thinks, it will be effective if he does that.”

In recent months, Biden has said in closed donor rooms that he believes Xi Jinping — China's president — is a dictator, and that Israel is using too much force in its ongoing campaign against terrorists in the Gaza Strip and elsewhere.

The president also recently said that he is not sure whether he would seek a second term if Donald Trump were not to run for office – a message that appears to be woefully out of line with the majority faction of the Democratic party, who believe that Biden is too. old to run again.

Just weeks ago, Biden called Israel's bombing of Hamas terrorists in Gaza “indiscriminate” during a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This formulation marked the first time that Biden was openly critical of Israel's approach to the war after October 7.

The criticism was subsequently dismissed by Biden's top foreign policy and security communicators such as John Kirby, who later claimed to reporters that the president was simply expressing concern about Israel taking civilian casualties into account.

Everything Biden says about Israel is not only semantically inconsistent with US policy, but also carries weight within the global bodies that legally adjudicate international conflicts, where Israel has very few friends.

His use of the word “arbitrary” raised questions about Israel's military strategy in Gaza, where Hamas terrorists claim 22,000 people have been killed.

What some leading donors and fundraisers have said is that “every time he (Biden) sounds more aggressive or takes an aggressive stance, his (approval) numbers go up.”

Joe Biden, who has struggled to contain dissent from progressives in his party over his public support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, recently criticized the Israeli leader, calling the IDF's bombing strategy “arbitrary.”

The Biden administration explicitly prohibits the transfer of weapons to other countries for the purpose of genocide, crimes against humanity, violations of the Geneva Conventions or other serious violations of international law – including “indiscriminate” bombings.

At the same event, Biden told donors that he had challenged the Israeli prime minister to “change” his government. In the past, Biden has told Netanyahu that he “disagrees with something you have to say.”

As he continued, reporters in the room were asked to leave by aides. They refused to do this.

Later, Kirby has to clarify that the president had only meant to say that “Israel is a strong, vibrant democracy, and any change in government will have to be determined by the Israeli people.”

For his part, Biden is at least somewhat aware of his problem with vomiting words, although that awareness has not historically stopped him from doing so.

In a positive spin on accountability, he said last year: “No one ever doubts that I mean what I say. The problem is that sometimes I say everything I mean.'

Biden is in the process of preparing to likely take on the famously outspoken Donald Trump again

Like many politicians, Biden often gives workshops that he can use later – for a larger audience – when he is in a more intimate setting.

Problems arise when reporters are on the ground and the president's words, because of his current position of power, are judged more harshly than those of any candidate — let alone a primary candidate — could be.

However, with the official parts of the primaries set to begin soon among Republicans, Biden's allies in the political arena (as opposed to the more formal policy space) are advocating letting Biden be Biden, especially in preparation for confronting the famously outspoken Trump .