On Friday’s White House press briefing, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre got into another battle with Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy because of her apparent inability to answer simple questions put to her.
The first question from Doocy came in light of comments made by the former chief editor of the Chinese state media outlet the Global Times, who suggested China would shoot down House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s plane if she visits Taiwan.
This is an extremely serious situation, so Doocy attempted to get a response from the White House: “an official who is associated with Chinese state media is suggesting that if Speaker Pelosi tries to go to Taiwan her plane could be shot down. Does the President have a response to that?”
Jean-Pierre’s response was that this was “something that we’re just not going to speak to” adding that it’s “a hypothetical, we are not we're just not going to speak on her schedule.”
You would think this would be a topic the White House would make a statement about since if China shot down the plane of the woman second in line for the presidency it would lead to a war between the United States and China.
Realizing he’s not going to receive an answer from Jean-Pierre, Doocy switched gears to the news that the Biden administration quietly approved construction of former President Trump’s border wall in Arizona asking “why is the Biden administration building a border wall in Arizona?”
Jean-Pierre claimed “we're not finishing the wall. We are cleaning up the mess the prior administration left behind in their failed attempt to build a wall.”
Doocy responded: “President Biden when he was a candidate said that there will not be another foot of wall constructed in my administration. So what changed?” Jean-Pierre continued flailing around and wailed “we are not finishing the wall.”
“If walls work in that part of Arizona, is this the administration trying to get migrants to cross somewhere else? Like in Texas? What is the point?” Doocy asked.
Jean-Pierre angrily shot back and set off this exchange (click “expand”):
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing a wall! We are cleaning up the mess that the prior administration made. We are trying to save lives. This is what, this is what the prior administration left behind that we are now cleaning up.
DOOCY: By finishing the wall, is this—
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing the wall.
DOOCY: By filling in? Finishing?
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing the wall.
Doocy came prepared as always because he dug up comments made by Jean-Pierre from 2019 in which she called the border wall racist, and now three years later she’s in an administration that is attempting to finish building part of the wall:
“Is this racist? Because in 2019 when the former guy was proposing a wall, you said that it was his racist wall. So how is this any different? I'm just having a hard time understanding how this is any different” Doocy asked.
Jean-Pierre falsely claimed, “A border wall is [an] ineffective use of taxpayer dollars so it's ineffective of taxpayer dollars” and reiterated “we're not finishing a wall. We are cleaning up the mess that the last administration made.”
To read the transcript of this exchange click “expand”:
White House press briefing
July 29, 2022
2:25:30 p.m. EasternPETER DOOCY: Thanks Karine, an official who is associated with Chinese state media is suggesting that if Speaker Pelosi tries to go to Taiwan her plane could be shot down. Does the President have a response to that?
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: You know, I’ve been asked about–-I know you’re asking specifically about the rhetoric that we’re hearing from China. But as it relates to the Speaker’s travels, it’s something that we’re just not going to speak to. Right now that’s a hypothetical, we are not we're just not going to speak on her schedule. As we have said multiple times, we give advice and guidance to any members of Congress where they travel to the region. They travel whether a advice on geopolitical situation in the region or in the country and any national security issues that may arise. But again, I'm not going to speak to a hypothetical.
DOOCY: Okay and on another subject, why is the Biden administration building a border wall in Arizona?
JEAN-PIERRE: So we are not, we're not finishing the wall. We are cleaning up the mess the prior administration left behind in their failed attempt to build a wall. And I just want to be very, very clear here. On day one, we returned the money, the $8 billion dollars the prior administration took from our military. We gave that back to the military for military families, for schools, for bases. That's what that money was being used. That's what it was taken away from. And so again, what we're doing is cleaning up the mess that the prior administration has done.
DOOCY: But President Biden when he was a candidate said that there will not be another foot of wall constructed in my administration. So what changed?
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing the wall.
DOOCY: If walls work in that part of Arizona, is this the administration trying to get migrants to cross somewhere else? Like in Texas? What is the point?
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing a wall! We are cleaning up the mess that the prior administration made. We are trying to save lives. This is what, this is what the prior administration left behind that we are now cleaning up.
DOOCY: By finishing the wall, is this—
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing the wall.
DOOCY: By filling in? Finishing?
JEAN-PIERRE: We are not finishing the wall.
DOOCY: By filling in? Is this racist? Because in 2019 when the former guy was proposing a wall, you said that it was his racist wall. So how is this any different? I'm just having a hard time understanding how this is any different.
JEAN-PIERRE: I'm not even sure how you get to your first question to this question that you just asked me. I will say this a border wall. I'm answering your question. A border wall is ineffective use of taxpayer dollars so it's ineffective of taxpayer dollars. Dollars that actually went to the military. That the last administration, the prior President took from the military which took away from schools which took away from military bases.
That's what that money that he pulled away from to build this wall that he wanted. That is ineffective by the way, which I just said just recently CBP reported that new bollard fencing along the southwest border was breached 3,272 times between fiscal year of 2019 and 2021 requiring 2.6 million in repairs. It's ineffective. We're not finishing a wall. We are cleaning up the mess that the last administration made.
