Reporters at the White House press briefing on Thursday continuously pressed White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on why President Joe Biden will not hold a press conference during his upcoming meeting with world leaders. The president is set to meet with the heads of Australia, India and Japan for his final “Quad” summit at his home in Delaware on Saturday.
CBS News senior White House correspondent Ed O’Keefe asked Jean-Pierre why the press will not be allowed to witness the bilateral meetings between Biden and the world leaders. Jean-Pierre defended the decision, stating that it was important for Biden to have personal interactions with the leaders and that there will be other opportunities for the press to observe the summit events.
But O’Keefe was not satisfied with Jean-Pierre’s response, stating, “It’s not like we’re not allowing all of you to see many other things that are going to develop throughout the day.” He then brought up Biden’s commitment to transparency and respecting the freedom of press, questioning why he won’t face questions from reporters in such a setting.
Newsmax White House correspondent James Rosen also chimed in, stating that the scheduled events for Saturday’s summit are just “photo ops” and not a press conference, which many reporters would prefer. Jean-Pierre shot back, stating that there are multiple opportunities for the press to be present during the summit and that photo ops can also be a positive thing.
The conversation became heated as Jean-Pierre snapped at Rosen, saying, “Excuse me, excuse me, I’m not speaking to you, I really am not. Let me have my conversation with Ed.” She then continued to explain how it is not unusual for world leaders to not hold a press conference during their visit to the U.S.
The press secretary also mentioned that the “Quad” summit is just one part of the day for the president, highlighting other events such as a “Quad” family photo and a visit to Biden’s high school. However, O’Keefe noted that it is still baffling why the president would not take the opportunity to face questions from the press while standing with leaders from key democracies in a region that is struggling to maintain democracy.
The back-and-forth continued as Jean-Pierre defended the decision by stating that there have been previous instances where world leaders did not hold a press conference during their visit to the U.S. Despite the pushback from reporters, it seems that the White House is standing firm in their decision to not hold a press conference during the “Quad” summit on Saturday.
It remains to be seen if the press will continue to pressure the White House to allow for a press conference during the summit, or if the decision will stay the same.
But it is clear that the issue of transparency and press freedom is a concern among reporters, and it is something that the Biden administration will have to address in the coming days and weeks.
Source: SilverCircular
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