Real Clear Politics’s Philip Wegmann closed out Monday’s White House press briefing as the only reporter in the press corps to grill ever-inept Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre over what’s, at minimum, a questionable lack of ethics by President Biden having son Hunter attend last week’s state dinner for the Indian prime minister with Attorney General Merrick Garland.
“It’s not unusual for presidents to invite members of their family to official White House functions, like the State Dinner last week. I’m curious, though, in light of some of the recent legal controversy, if the President communicated to members of his family not to conduct business on White House ground,” he asked.
He added on a more specific addendum: “Can you tell us a bit about any kinds of guardrails that are up?”
Jean-Pierre started with the usual caveats that she need to “be...very mindful” because it concerns a Justice Department case.
Once she got past that, the answer was comical:
But as you know and we have laid out very — early on in this administration, when it comes to ethics, when it comes to how we all kind of move about and how we have — we respect, clearly, the government ethics here, this is a presi — this is an administration has been incredibly transparent on that and has put some very strict — strict rules[.]
Jean-Pierre added she “can speak to that” and “how the President has moved forward in making sure that the people who work for him and himself are — are held to, kind of, a strict course of action.”
Wegmann re-upped the part about whether he or anyone has called for there to be “guardrails” for the First Family when they conduct business, but Jean-Pierre scoffed, twice saying she wouldn’t “speak to anything that’s related to this case” except to say “ethics” are “take[n] that very, very seriously here in this administration.”
Prior to that, Wegmann’s other question concerned 2024 GOP presidential candidate and Governor Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) visit to the border.
As her predecessor did in claiming Republicans were the defund-the-police party, Jean-Pierre insisted Republicans were the party that’s against funding to protect the southern border (click “expand”):
WEGMANN: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is on the border, and he is escalating his attacks against the Biden administration, who, in his words, he calls, “the critical link in an illegal transnational human smuggling syndicate.” I’m wondering if the White House has any response to that kind of rhetoric.
(....)
JEAN-PIERRE: What I can speak to is more broadly and, you know, I will remind — remind you that Repub — congressional Republicans just voted — literally, they just voted a few weeks ago, a month ago, to — for the biggest border security cut in history — the biggest cut in history — when it came to the Default on America Act. That’s what that was. Part of that act was to cut border security and that’s what they voted on and meanwhile, what this President has done, he has secured record funding for border security, he has record number of agents and officers securing our border, and is implementing policies that have resulted in significant drop in unlawful border crossings since Title 42. That is what the President has done and so, you know, I’m, again, going to be very mindful in how I respond. But speaking more broadly, I would say the question is to not us, but it is to congressional Republicans and what they have done to make this situation even more difficult by cutting — by cutting the budget for bo — by voting to cut the budget for border security and not supporting this President in what he’s been trying to do.
To see the relevant transcript from the June 26 briefing, click “expand.”
White House press briefing [via ABC News Live]
June 26, 2023
3:10 p.m. EasternPHILIP WEGMANN: I’ve got two quick questions. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is on the border, and he is escalating his attacks against the Biden administration, who, in his words, he calls, “the critical link in an illegal transnational human smuggling syndicate.” I’m wondering if the White House has any response to that kind of rhetoric.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Wait, say that one more time, because I have not — I have not heard his remarks.
WEGMANN: The governor says that the White House, in his words, is “the critical link in an illegal transnational human smuggling syndicate.”
JEAN-PIERRE: So, I’m going to be careful because, yes, he’s the governor, but he’s also a candidate, so I’m bound by the Hatch Act., so I’m going to be incredibly careful, and I’m not going to comment on campaign ma- — matters. What I can speak to is more broadly and, you know, I will remind — remind you that Repub — congressional Republicans just voted — literally, they just voted a few weeks ago, a month ago, to — for the biggest border security cut in history — the biggest cut in history — when it came to the Default on America Act. That’s what that was. Part of that act was to cut border security and that’s what they voted on and meanwhile, what this President has done, he has secured record funding for border security, he has record number of agents and officers securing our border, and is implementing policies that have resulted in significant drop in unlawful border crossings since Title 42. That is what the President has done and so, you know, I’m, again, going to be very mindful in how I respond. But speaking more broadly, I would say the question is to not us, but it is to congressional Republicans and what they have done to make this situation even more difficult by cutting — by cutting the budget for bo — by voting to cut the budget for border security and not supporting this President in what he’s been trying to do.
WEGMANN: And my second question: It’s not unusual for presidents to invite members of their family to official White House functions, like the State Dinner last week. I’m curious, though, in light of some of the recent legal controversy, if the President communicated to members of his family not to conduct business on White House grounds. Can you tell us a bit about any kinds of guardrails that are up?
JEAN-PIERRE: So, look, I’m going to be, again, very mindful, because this is all connected to — to a case that the DOJ is currently overseeing, so I’m not going to comment on that specifically. But as you know and we have laid out very — early on in this administration, when it comes to ethics, when it comes to how we all kind of move about and how we have — we respect, clearly, the government ethics here, this is a presi — this is an administration has been incredibly transparent on that and has put some very strict — strict rules and so I can speak to that. I can speak to how the President has moved forward in making sure that the people who work for him and himself are — are held to, kind of, a strict course of action. But I’m not going to speak to anything that’s related to —
WEGMANN: So —
JEAN-PIERRE: — the case. I’m go- —
WEGMANN: — [INAUDIBLE] to White House staff about anything about guardrails —
JEAN-PIERRE: I’m just —
WEGMANN: — for the President’s family?
JEAN-PIERRE: I’m just not going to speak to anything that’s related to this case. I —
WEGMANN: Do any guardrails exist?
JEAN-PIERRE: I am not going to speak to anything that is related to this case. As you stated, there are — we’ve had — when it comes to ethics, we take that very, very seriously here in this administration.
