White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Refuses to Answer Questions on President Biden’s Public Silence Amid Government Funding Fight
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dodged questions on Friday about President Biden’s lack of public appearances amid the ongoing government funding fight, which is threatening a partial shutdown. Reporters pressed Jean-Pierre on why the president has not spoken to the American public about his position, but she instead blamed Republicans and President-elect Trump for the chaos on Capitol Hill.
All Americans need to know that Republicans are getting in the way here and they are the ones who have created this mess, Jean-Pierre said. She accused Republicans of doing the bidding of their billionaire friends, including Elon Musk, who has been critical of government waste.
Jean-Pierre refused to answer whether President Biden has spoken to House Speaker Mike Johnson about the ongoing discussions, but claimed that the president has held phone calls with Democratic leaders in Congress. She also said that Biden has been getting regular updates from his team and has been in touch with congressional members from both sides of the aisle.
The partial government shutdown looms as a House bill backed by Trump failed to pass the House of Representatives on Thursday night. The bill, which needed two-thirds of the House chamber to pass, failed by a vote of 174 to 235. The national debt has soared to over $36 trillion, and the national deficit is over $1.8 trillion.
Jean-Pierre warned that a shutdown could disrupt the presidential transition process for the incoming administration, saying that transition activities would be restricted with limited exceptions. She also reiterated that Republicans need to stop playing politics with a government shutdown and do the bidding of hard-working Americans.