Afterwards, Psaki makes a Fox News appearance to clean up the mess Biden made at the presser.
One day after President Biden gave his first solo press conference of 2022, Jen Psaki made a rare appearance on Fox News to try to clean up after him, but it didn’t work.
The president caused a lot of people to be angry at a news conference on Wednesday when he said that a “minor incursion” into Ukraine by Russian forces would get less attention.
In other words, Biden said this week that this year’s midterm elections could be illegitimate because the Senate didn’t pass a major election reform bill that died hours later when Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) voted to keep the 60-vote legislative filibuster in place.
He said, “I’m not going to say that this is going to be legal.” This means that the number of people who don’t think they’re legitimate is going to go up as a result of us not getting these changes passed.
A spokesperson for Joe Biden made the claim on Fox News Thursday. Psaki said Biden “absolutely is not predicting that the 2022 elections will not be legitimate.”
Asked by Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino on America’s Newsroom, “The point he was making was that even in the midst of a pandemic, even though there were challenges, there was a record turnout in 2020.”
Trump asked for seven or more states to re-run the election; that’s what he was saying. Now, of course, if there’s a plan to do that, we have to fight against it. When he said “That’s what we’re going to do,” he was not making a prediction.
People in Eastern Europe are fighting, and Psaki said that “any movement of military forces into Ukraine” would have “very bad economic consequences” for Russia.
There had been a quote from Biden a day earlier that said that the Western response to an invasion by Moscow “depends on what it does.”
“It’s one thing if it’s a small invasion, but then we have a fight about what to do and what not to do, and so on,” Biden said. “But if they do what they can with the force they have on the border, it will be bad for Russia.”
Vice President Joe Biden said later that he had already sent more than $600 million worth of sophisticated equipment and defense equipment to Ukraine. The Russians will lose a lot of lives if they go into Ukraine. They’ll be able to win in the long run, but it will be a lot. It will be real. It’s going to be important.”
There are no small countries or minor invasions. We want to remind the great powers that there are no small countries or minor invasions. As there are no minor injuries and little grief from the loss of loved ones, there are no minor injuries or little grief from the loss of things. This is what I say because I am the President of a powerful country.
No, our national security team has not been in touch with the White House.
The Secretary of State is Tony Blinken is in Europe right now, and he will be there for a while. It’s also important to note that the foreign minister said this morning that he is confident that the United States will help him. He should be, because the United States is supportive and we have their backs.
Joe Biden told the New York Post Wednesday that he asked China’s president about the origins of COVID-19 during an online summit with him in November. The press secretary was also asked about Biden’s claim to the newspaper. During the meeting, the White House didn’t write about the topic. Biden said his press team didn’t know about the exchange because they weren’t there at the time.
Claims: “He never holds back and he’s always firm in his talks.” “I can tell you that, even with President Xi, whom he has known for a long time and has had a lot of deep, direct talks with.”
At the same time, Psaki was asked about the border crisis, which the president didn’t talk about when he answered questions from the press on Thursday.
2 million people are thought to have run into each other on the southern border in 2021. Bill Hemmer, a co-host on the show, said that a recent Fox News report on the number of encounters last year was “just blowing away all kinds of records.” There doesn’t seem to be much of a sign that the policy will change. In 2022, should we expect to see two million more people?
Asked by a reporter if the president thinks we should do more, Psaki said, “Yes, the president thinks that we should do more.” “That means better security at the border, which is better for everyone.” It also means that we should be more moral when we treat people who cross the border.
The press secretary also said that the US hasn’t done enough to help migrants in their home countries get what they need to move to the US.
Asked about rising violent crime rates in the United States, which polls show are becoming more important to people, Psaki said that Vice President Joe Biden has “encouraged” local and state officials to fight crime in their own communities and that she expects to see a big rise in funding for local police.
It was clear when the press secretary was asked about overly lenient prosecutors in New York City and other places that Biden was “not going to get into the actions of prosecutors or the legal Justice Dept.” That’s his main point.
He’s also been very clear, she said. The police, first responders, and local law enforcement have been important to him for a long time. He’s been a strong supporter of COPS programs and more money. As you know, defunding the police was a big issue. “That was never something he ever said or supported, even when there was real criticism from inside the country.”
Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, lifted most of the country’s coronavirus restrictions and mandates on Thursday, one day after the interview. When asked if the administration has a “off-ramp” plan for things like this, Psaki didn’t say.
Because we listen to the scientists, she said, “I can’t make a prediction about that.” “Of course, we’ve seen COVID-19 rise in some parts of the world.” Some parts of the US have seen it rise and fall a little, but we’re going to keep an eye on it.
