At the conclusion of an exchange, White House Correspondent for Fox News, Jacqui Heinrich, asked White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre if she would acknowledge that “the debt is a crisis.”
Reports show that President Biden and his team have been claiming that Republicans are using the debt ceiling as a “hostage” to compel budget discussions. In light of the impending deadline, however, the White House announced on Tuesday that the president would be cutting short a portion of his international tour.
A press conference was held before that meeting, and the debt ceiling was a major topic of conversation, culminating in an incident in which Heinrich tried to yell over Jean-Pierre to ask a follow-up question.
A video reveals reporters were deeply annoyed with Jean-Pierre in March after she announced that reporters in attendance for a meeting between President Biden and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar would be able to pose questions to Biden from the press pool.
Throughout the press briefing, Jean-Pierre asked why Biden and Varadkar did not have a joint news conference scheduled.
During the presser at the Oval Office, which occurs whenever a head of state is in town, Jean-Pierre said they would be given their chance to ask questions. That means they may ask the president or any other world leader who happens to be visiting the White House a question directly.
The press began pushing back immediately, with one remarking that Biden never accepts inquiries during those periods.
Jean-Pierre said it wasn’t true and that he had answered questions.
There was an uproar as one reporter said that White House officials often screeched at them to leave or were shouted down whenever they asked questions.
Jean-Pierre tried to address the media, but she was constantly interrupted by grumbling reporters.
She sidestepped the reporters’ inquiries about Biden’s refusal to address them and instead assured the journalists that they’d have an opportunity to do so when the two leaders were available for interviews.
