During the media-wide prostration over New York City Tuesday for former President Trump’s arrest and arraignment, a White House press briefing took place and reporters such as The New York Times’s Michael Shear called out Jean-Pierre and President Biden for the double standard in refusing to weigh into some but not all criminal probes.
Shear came a few moments after Doocy Time as the Fox correspondent asked why the White House wouldn’t say more about something the country has never seen before. Shear latched onto Jean-Pierre’s ducks and dodges, noting Biden “has spoken repeatedly about January 6th,” including “at least two major speeches that I can think of, and he’s talked at length” about it despite there being “more than 500 active legal cases going on.”
Noting that those “potentially could have been affected...by whatever his opinions were,” Shear questioned “what is different between his being willing to talk about...the issues presented by — by what happened on January 6th and questions about” Trump.
“But there are issues that are presented — people have been talking about it for weeks now — when a former President — any former President would be indicted for the first time and arrested for the first time. What is the White House’s reticence? And what’s the difference between that and this,” he added.
Jean-Pierre insisted Biden was within his bounds because “January 6th was a devastating day” and people “died” in a “devastating” “attack on our democracy” that “millions and millions of Americans...watched”.
“[A]nd so the President will never shy away when it comes to our democracy, when it comes to the fabric of who we are as a country and what makes this country who it — what it is and so it — it was a different, different moment and a different time,” she explained.
After she said he (and his White House) wouldn’t “comment” on “these criminal, like, specific cases,” Shear called her out as not making sense with Jean-Pierre melting down over the friendly reporter “lecturing” her (click “expand”):
SHEAR: I get it. I was asking why you weren’t —
JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah, I —
SHEAR: — going to comment on —
JEAN-PIERRE: And I — and I —
SHEAR: — from there and — and —
JEAN-PIERRE: And I’m hoping that I laid that out for you and I just laid out why we commented on January 6th and we’re just going to be very mindful. These are ongoing cases —
SHEAR: So were the 500 cases involving Americans —
JEAN-PIERRE: I — yeah, I —
SHEAR: — who — who — whose freedom —
JEAN-PIERRE: I hear —
SHEAR: — was at —
JEAN-PIERRE: — I hear you.
SHEAR: — at risk —
JEAN-PIERRE: I hear you, but —
SHEAR: — right? So —
JEAN-PIERRE: — this is something that all of Americans watch in real time.
SHEAR: There were —
JEAN-PIERRE: In real time.
SHEAR: — Karine, there are milli- —
JEAN-PIERRE: And people —
SHEAR: — wait. There —
JEAN-PIERRE: — people died.
SHEAR: — I — believe me —
JEAN-PIERRE: People died.
SHEAR: — Karine, I don’t need a lecture —
JEAN-PIERRE: People died.
SHEAR: — on the fact that people died.
JEAN-PIERRE: But you’re lecturing me.
SHEAR: But — but what I’m —
JEAN-PIERRE: But you’re lecturing me.
SHEAR: I’m not. What I’m —
JEAN-PIERRE: Yes, you are.
Shear eventually got a follow-up and poked holes in her logic as, in both cases, “there are millions of people out there watching today” and while “[y]ou called January 6th ‘historic’” as something “none of us had ever seen that before,” “[n]obody has seen this before either.”
He continued: “[T]he President has talked a lot about how the rest of the world sees the United States in the wake of January 6th. Totally valid. Why isn’t that — why isn’t there a similar kind of assessment about how the world is watching us now? Good or bad. I’m not making a judgement whichever way.”
Jean-Pierre stuck to her talking points that January 6 “was incredibly devastating” and “people died on that day,” so it’s been necessary for Biden to weigh in on a subject such as “protecting our democracy” and has left “many people...scared”
McClatchy’s Michael Wilner saw another problem with the will-he-or-won’t-he argument: “Are you — are you saying that if the former President is indicted related to January 6th, you would comment on that case?”
Jean-Pierre didn’t budge and insisting she wouldn’t “get into hypotheticals from here.”
To see the relevant transcript from April 4’s briefing, click “expand.”
White House press briefing [via ABC News Live]
April 4, 2023
2:04 p.m. EasternMICHAEL SHEAR: The President has spoken repeatedly about January 6th. He gave at least two major speeches that I can think of, and he’s talked at length — I’m sorry — talked at length in — in various forums. There were more than 500 active legal cases going on during the time that he made those speeches, all of which potentially could have been affected — would have been affected by whatever his opinions were on the circumstances surrounding those cases. Why — what is different between his being willing to talk about — not the specifics of individual cases, but to talk about the issues presented by — by what happened on January 6th and questions about — just to — just to put a fine point on it — I’m, sort of, going on Peter’s point — it’s like — and, frankly, a lot of the questions here — there’s an understanding about not wanting to comment specifically about this case, perhaps. But there are issues that are presented — people have been talking about it for weeks now — when a former President — any former President would be indicted for the first time and arrested for the first time. What is the White House’s reticence? And what’s the difference between that and this?
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Done?
SHEAR: I’m done. [JEAN-PIERRE LAUGHS] Sorry. Apologies.
JEAN-PIERRE: No, it’s okay. But with all seriousness, January 6th was a devastating day. Like, you guys — I think — if you guys weren’t there, some of your colleagues were on Capitol Hill. We had — we had law enforcement, police officers who were attacked, who died. And what we saw on that day was an attack on our democracy. It was a devastating, devastating day in our history and it was — it was a moment for this President to have spoken to, right? You had millions and millions of Americans who watched what was happening on Capitol Hill, something that many of us — I’d never seen it and many of us had never ever seen before. You know? And it was something that needed to be spoken to, when you see something like that — our democracy, literally our democracy, under attack and so the President will never shy away when it comes to our democracy, when it comes to the fabric of who we are as a country and what makes this country who it — what it is and so it — it was a different, different moment and a different time. What we’re —
SHEAR: But what — I’m sorry.
JEAN-PIERRE: No, I hear — I hear —
SHEAR: Well, I was just going to follow up.
JEAN-PIERRE: I know, but let me —
SHEAR: Sure. Go ahead.
JEAN-PIERRE: When it comes to these types of cases — these criminal, like, specific cases — we’re just not going to comment. I know there’s a broad- — I get — I get you. I know there’s a broader question of what this means — the precedent and — and what the President is going to decide or make decisions that he might make, like hypothetical questions. I’m just not going to comment from here on that.
SHEAR: I get it. I was asking why you weren’t —
JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah, I —
SHEAR: — going to comment on —
JEAN-PIERRE: And I — and I —
SHEAR: — from there and — and —
JEAN-PIERRE: And I’m hoping that I laid that out for you and I just laid out why we commented on January 6th and we’re just going to be very mindful. These are ongoing cases —
SHEAR: So were the 500 cases involving Americans —
JEAN-PIERRE: I — yeah, I —
SHEAR: — who — who — whose freedom —
JEAN-PIERRE: I hear —
SHEAR: — was at —
JEAN-PIERRE: — I hear you.
SHEAR: — at risk —
JEAN-PIERRE: I hear you, but —
SHEAR: — right? So —
JEAN-PIERRE: — this is something that all of Americans watch in real time.
SHEAR: There were —
JEAN-PIERRE: In real time.
SHEAR: — Karine, there are milli- —
JEAN-PIERRE: And people —
SHEAR: — wait. There —
JEAN-PIERRE: — people died.
SHEAR: — I — believe me —
JEAN-PIERRE: People died.
SHEAR: — Karine, I don’t need a lecture —
JEAN-PIERRE: People died.
SHEAR: — on the fact that people died.
JEAN-PIERRE: But you’re lecturing me.
SHEAR: But — but what I’m —
JEAN-PIERRE: But you’re lecturing me.
SHEAR: I’m not. What I’m —
JEAN-PIERRE: Yes, you are.
SHEAR: I’m asking questions and what I’m saying is, there are millions of people out there watching today. You called January 6th “historic.” It was absolutely historic, and none of us had ever seen that before. Nobody has seen this before either. There are millions and millions of Americans watching, the first time in 250 years, a former President be hauled into court and — and processed for arrest. That means something. That has some effect, potentially, I suspect, on — on American democracy and on how the rest of the world — you know, the President has talked a lot about how the rest of the world sees the United States in the wake of January 6th. Totally valid. Why isn’t that — why isn’t there a similar kind of assessment about how the world is watching us now? Good or bad. I’m not making a judgement —
JEAN-PIERRE: No —
SHEAR: — whichever way.
JEAN-PIERRE: — I —
SHEAR: I’m just saying —
JEAN-PIERRE: — and I hear your question. January 6th is just — was a different moment. It just was.
SHEAR: Okay.
JEAN-PIERRE: It was something that — that was incredibly devastating. People died on that day and were harmed and it was just — it was just something that we saw visually that we reacted to, and many people were scared in that moment and as the President was taking office as the next President of the United States — a President that ran on bringing the country together, on protecting our democracy — it was something that it was important to speak to at that — at that moment. And also, you know, we know that Americans still very much care about this. When it comes to a criminal investigation like this that is ongoing, we are just not going to comment. We’re not going to interfere. We’re not going to politically interfere from here and we’ve been consistent. We’ve been very consistent. I know you’re bringing up January 6th. I just laid out why we believe that was very different, but we’re just going to be consistent on not commenting on any criminal ongoing investigation.
(....)
2:11 p.m. Eastern
MICHAEL WILNER: Just a quick follow-up on Michael’s question. Are you — are you saying that if the former President is indicted related to January 6th, you would comment on that case?
JEAN-PIERRE: I’m — I’m just — I’m not going to get into hypotheticals from here. All I’m saying is we’re just not going to comment on ongoing investigation, as we’re looking what’s un — unfolding today. I’m just not going to comment on it.
