White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre grew flustered Tuesday when asked by North Carolina radio host Mark Garrison if President Biden has “dementia” — saying the inquiry was “incredibly insulting” before rushing off the call moments later by curtly wishing Garrison an “amazing, amazing day.”
Jean-Pierre gave the interview as Biden, 81, traveled to the swing state to host a healthcare-focused event with Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and Vice President Kamala Harris.
“When I told a number of people that I was talking to you today, it was interesting, though, they all said: ‘Would you please just ask her: Does the president have dementia?’ And so before I move on from that, does he?” the WBT Charlotte host asked.
“Mark, I can’t even believe you’re asking me this question,” Jean-Pierre exclaimed.
“That is an incredibly offensive question to ask.”
When Garrison interjected, “but you know people ask it,” Jean-Pierre added, “Wait, no, let me — no, no, no, no, no! Mark, you’re taking us down this rabbit hole.
“Let me be very clear about this: For the past several years, the president’s physician has laid out… in a comprehensive way the president’s health. This is a president. if you watch him every day, if you really pay attention to his record and what he has done, you will see exactly how focused he has been on the American people, how historic his actions has been,” she went on.
“And so I’m not even going to — truly, truly, really — you know, take the premise of your question, I think it is incredibly insulting. And so we can, you know, we can move on to the next question.”
The blustery denial of Biden’s mental decline contrasted with the president’s own approach during a public event in Raleigh in which he jokingly acknowledged his age by saying he was “only 40 years old, times two, plus one.”
Garrison asked at least one unrelated question before Jean-Pierre ended the interview.
“Gas prices and grocery prices, then,” he continued. “Big topics here in North Carolina. How does Mr. Biden win votes when people don’t have as much disposable income?” Garrison asked.
“Look, the president understands. He grew up in a middle-class family, working-class family in Scranton, Pennsylvania. And he gets it,” Jean-Pierre said, before launching into a defense of Biden’s record.
“He understands how difficult it is for Americans who are sitting around their kitchen table every month trying to figure out what they’re going to pay for. You have to remember when the president walked into this administration, there were multiple crises happening: there was COVID, there was the economy that was in a tailspin because of the last administration, because of what President Trump left us with,” she said.
“Now you’re asking me about gas prices. The president took action on gas prices. Let’s not forget Russia’s invasion on Ukraine skyrocketed prices of gas and because the president took action, we see we are in a different place than we were in gas prices. Eggs milk, seafood products — all the important groceries, those costs have gone down because of what this president has been able to do.” “
Jean-Pierre abruptly added: “And with that, thank you so much, Mark. Have an amazing, amazing day.”
The radio station added a disconnected-phone sound effect.
It’s unclear if any questions were cut from the tape before the interview’s seemingly abrupt end.
White House staff often line up brief interviews with local TV or radio hosts before traveling to a state and it’s also unclear if some explanation other than evident annoyance — such as the allotted time running over — resulted in the hasty goodbye.
