White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was dismayed Tuesday when North Carolina radio host Mark Garrison asked her if President Biden had “dementia,” calling the investigation “incredibly insulting.” Immediately afterward, he simply said to Garrison, “I hope you do something great,” and ended the call. , Great day. “
Jean-Pierre was speaking to Biden, 81, who was in the battleground state to host an event focused on health care with Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“I told some people that I was talking to you today, and it was funny, but they all said, ‘Why don’t you just ask her, does the president have dementia? ‘So before I move on from that, he is, right?’ the WBT Charlotte host asked.
“Mark, I can’t believe you’re asking me this,” cried Jean-Pierre.
“That’s an incredibly offensive question.”
Garrison interjects, “But you know people ask that,” and Jean-Pierre adds, “But you know people ask that.” Mark, you take us down the rabbit hole.
“Let me be very clear about this: For the past several years, the President’s physician … has provided a comprehensive account of the President’s health. “If you really pay attention to what he’s done, you can clearly see how focused he has been on the American people and how historic his actions are,” she said. upon.
“So, I’m really, really, really not even going to accept the premise of your question. I find it incredibly insulting. Then we can move on to the next question.”
Biden’s categorical denial of mental decline contrasts with the president’s own approach, in which he jokingly acknowledged his age at a public event in Raleigh: “I’m only two times one, 40.” It was spot on.
Mr. Garrison asked Mr. Jean-Pierre at least one unrelated question before he ended the interview.
“So gas prices and food prices,” he continued. “It’s a big topic here in North Carolina. How can Mr. Biden get votes when people don’t have that much disposable income?” Garrison asked.
“Look, the president gets it. He grew up in a middle-class family, a working-class family in Scranton, Pennsylvania. And he gets it,” Jean-Pierre said of Biden’s record. before starting to defend.
“He understands how difficult it is for Americans who sit around the kitchen table every month and try to figure out what they’re going to pay for. When the president came into this administration, he faced multiple crises. We have to remember that we had COVID-19 and we had a depressed economy because of what the previous administration and President Trump left us with,” she said. .
“You’re hearing about gas prices right now. The president took action on gas prices. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused gas prices to go up, and the president took action that put gas prices in a different place than before. Don’t forget that we know that eggs, milk, seafood, all the important foodstuffs, the cost of these things has come down because of this president.”
Jean-Pierre quickly added: “Well, thank you very much, Mark. Have a wonderful, wonderful day.”
It is unclear whether any questions were cut from the tape before the interview ended abruptly.
White House staffers often schedule short interviews with local television and radio hosts to coincide with their trips, but they are rushed for reasons other than an obvious nuisance, such as exceeding the allotted time. It is unclear whether they said goodbye or not.
