President Joe Biden now says he’s “happy to meet” with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), a reversal from his stance in recent weeks.
Johnson has been trying to set up a meeting with Biden for weeks to talk about funding for the war in Ukraine and for border security, calls the president rejected but is apparently now reconsidering.
“Sure, I’d be happy to meet with him if he has anything to say,” Biden said upon returning to the White House on Monday after spending the weekend at his Delaware beach home.
Johnson complained last week that for “a month, I’ve been asking to sit down with the president to talk about the border and talk about national security, and that meeting has not been granted.”
If Biden is now willing to meet with Johnson, it represents a sharp change from Wednesday, when press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre rebuffed questions about a face-to-face talk between the president and House speaker.
“What is there to negotiate?” she said. “Really, truly, what is the one-on-one negotiation about when [Johnson has] been presented with exactly what he asked for? He’s negotiating with himself.”
The death of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny last Friday may have opened a new opportunity for Biden to get additional Ukraine funding approved.
Johnson said as much himself in the wake of Navalny’s death, calling for the United States to use “every means possible” to stop Russia’s advance.
But the speaker has also demanded “accountability” over how funds are spent and refused to vote on the matter until Congress addresses border security.
Biden was sharp in his own remarks about Navalny, demanding that Congress must act to stop Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I mean this in a literal sense: History is watching,” Biden said. “History is watching the House of Representatives. The failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will never be forgotten.”
Biden reiterated that stance before walking into the White House on Presidents Day.
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“They’re making a big mistake not responding,” he said of Republicans. “Look, the way they’re walking away from the threat of Russia, the way they’re walking away from NATO, the way they’re walking away from meeting our obligations, it’s just shocking. I mean, they’re wild. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Biden also said the U.S. is considering additional sanctions on Russia.
