White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre could not truly explain why President Joe Biden performed poorly during last Thursday’s debate despite being pressed repeatedly during Wednesday’s press conference.
Jean-Pierre repeatedly insisted Biden did not perform well because of a combination of having a cold, having jet lag from his recent trip overseas, and simply working hard for the American people. When confronted by Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich that the “fatigue” and “cold” excuses did not make sense because Biden had been at Camp David for days prior to the debate, Jean-Pierre became defensive.
“Have you had a cold before?” Jean-Pierre asked.
“Of course I have,” Heinrich replied.
“Come on, come on, Jacqui. … Hold on a second. There’s a cold. There’s a jet lag. You combine that he continues to work on the, for the American people day in and day out around the clock. Things happen. Things happen, and the cold thing is something that you all pointed out during his debate. We didn’t even point that out. You all pointed out when you heard his — his voice being hoarse because he knew he had to push through,” Jean-Pierre said.
‘Interrupting a colleague’s question with shouted commentary is inappropriate.’
“He knew he has to power through. That’s what presidents do. If you care about this country, and you don’t care about yourself, you care about the American people, you care about delivering for this country, you care about how you’re going to continue to work every day in and day out. You push through,” she continued.
Heinrich also asked Jean-Pierre if Biden takes daily naps in the afternoon. Jean-Pierre did not deny the report, instead saying, “Let me be very clear about this. This is a president that wakes up every morning and puts the American people first. That’s what he does. He does that every single day. That is his focus.”
Things in the briefing room became even more interesting when it was NBC News senior White House correspondent Kelly O’Donnell’s turn to ask questions.
“You’re saying that he’s absolutely running. … And we would invite the president to come tell us that directly,” O’Donnell told Jean-Pierre.
“If he’s awake,” Newsmax White House reporter James Rosen interjected.
“That’s inappropriate,” O’Donnell snapped back.
“As you heard from your colleague, the president of the WHCA [White House Correspondents’ Association], that’s inappropriate. Thank you, Kelly,” Jean-Pierre said to Rosen.
“Interrupting a colleague’s question with shouted commentary is inappropriate. The briefing room is a forum for questions to be asked and answered with appropriate professional conduct,” Heinrich posted on X.
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