In the rare moments when Joe Biden’s staff emerge from their hiding spots and have to talk to the press, it’s often a disaster. During an audio-only gaggle on Tuesday, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre attacked the New York Times and other media outlets for their coverage of Biden’s age. According to Jean-Pierre, they should be spending more time criticizing Trump.
When a reporter from the Daily Mail asked Jean-Pierre about what topics media outlets should not cover when it comes to covering Biden’s age, she went off on a tangent, quoting a former New York Times journalist and criticizing the Times for not being self-critical enough. In reality, this is just an excuse from the Biden administration to tell the media to stop questioning the President’s age and cognitive abilities.
The bizarre answer from Jean-Pierre continued, with her rambling about how Biden has delivered historic legislation (a claim that is debatable at best), and therefore, he is in complete control of his faculties. This hardly seems like a convincing argument, especially after the numerous gaffes and shaky moments Biden has had on camera.
But Jean-Pierre wasn’t done yet. She went on to say that the media should take a lesson from former New York Times editor Margaret Sullivan and practice more self-scrutiny. However, it’s clear that what the administration really wants is for the media to focus on attacking Trump instead of questioning Biden’s abilities.
In response to a question about whether Biden plans to see his son Hunter during his trip to California, Jean-Pierre dismissed the topic, stating that she never talks about the President’s private conversations with his family. This is a blatant lie, as she did exactly that when she revealed that Biden had spoken to Hunter about his congressional subpoena back in December.
When a reporter brought up the recent wave of layoffs in the tech sector, Jean-Pierre seemed completely unaware and confused, asking for clarification multiple times. She then tried to turn the conversation back to the administration’s supposed economic success, claiming that layoffs are near record lows and unemployment is low. However, many experts argue that this isn’t the full picture, as the job market is still recovering from the devastating effects of the pandemic.
Even more concerning was an exchange between reporters and Jean-Pierre about the recent Israel-Hamas conflict. Instead of unequivocally condemning the terrorist group Hamas, Jean-Pierre seemed hesitant to even criticize them, and refused to answer questions about whether the administration agrees with the Brazilian socialist president’s comparison of the situation to the Holocaust. Only after repeated questioning did Jean-Pierre finally concede that such a comparison is wrong.
Overall, this gaggle was just another example of the administration’s attempts to control the narrative and deflect from legitimate concerns about Biden’s fitness for office. It’s clear that the White House is not comfortable answering tough questions, and would rather have the media focus on attacking their opponents than holding them accountable. This is not how a transparent and accountable government should behave.