White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended her credibility as the Biden administration fields questions about President Joe Biden‘s health after his first debate against former President Donald Trump.
After Monday’s contentious briefing sparked by reports a Parkinson’s disease specialist had visited the White House multiple times, Jean-Pierre underscored her commitment to providing the best possible information she can to reporters. The White House circulated a letter late Monday from Biden’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, about the neurologist, Dr. Kevin Cannard, specifying he was Biden’s attending brain specialist but had not come to the executive campus for the president.
“This is the second time in less than a week where the briefing had prompted a need for later clarification on questions about the president’s health,” a reporter said Tuesday.
“I disagree,” Jean-Pierre interrupted. “A lot of the things that I said right here in this briefing room … it’s in the letter.
“I actually even said here at the podium, if there was more information that we could provide, we would do that,” she said. “And we did, but many of the things that I said right here is in the letter.”
Jean-Pierre was also needled on whether she needed to clarify any other comments she has made in her capacity as press secretary regarding Biden’s health, specifically last year when the president looked for the late Indiana Republican Rep. Jackie Walorski and last month when he did not attend a late sideline G7 leaders summit event.
“I would not,” the press secretary said, adding that “it has been an unprecedented time” and Biden is “ready” and “on fire.”
“He wants to get out there and continue to show that he has more work to do,” she continued. “I know sometimes you guys don’t believe us, but he does want to engage with you. He does want to talk more to the press.”
Jean-Pierre had earlier opened Tuesday’s briefing by apologizing for its one-and-a-half-hour delay, attributing her tardiness to a meeting with Biden in the Oval Office about Hurricane Beryl.
“He knows it’s important to the people of Texas, so he wanted to make sure before I came out here, I had all information,” she said.
Jean-Pierre had frustrated reporters on Monday after she declined to confirm whether Cannard had come to the White House despite his name appearing on public visitor logs. She also declined to explain the nature of his visits.
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“I am not sharing, confirming names from here,” she said. “It is a security reason. I am not going to do that. … It doesn’t matter how hard you push me. It doesn’t matter how angry you get with me. I am not going to confirm a name. It doesn’t matter if it’s even in the log. I am not going to do that from here. That is not something I am going to do.”
Last week, Jean-Pierre had to clarify that Biden had a “verbal check-in” with O’Connor after the debate and not a checkup as he told Democratic governors during a meeting to discuss his health as other elected Democrats call on him to step down as their party’s nominee before November’s election against Trump. Shortly beforehand, Jean-Pierre had denied that either one had taken place.
