Image Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was caught flat-footed when asked why Joe Biden was looking around asking for deceased Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) during a Wednesday speech.
The press briefing descended into chaos as Jean-Pierre offered a series of non-answers while fielding multiple questions from CNN, ABC, CBS, and Washington Post reporters about why Biden kept looking around the room for Walorski, who died in a car accident last month.
“What happened at the Hunger Event today? [Biden] appeared to look around…for…a member of Congress [Jackie Walorski] who passed away last month…What happened there?” ABC reporter Cecilia Vega asked.
Jean-Pierre responded that Walorski was “on his mind” during the event.
.@CeciliaVega: "What happened at the Hunger Event today? [Biden] appeared to look around…for…a member of Congress [Jackie Walorski] who passed away last month…What happened there?"
KJP: He "was acknowledging her incredible work…She was on his mind…top of mind" pic.twitter.com/LhEECd4QBR
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
“He said, ‘Jackie, are you here? Where is Jackie? She must not be here,’” Vega noted.
Jean-Pierre reiterated, “I just–I just explained. She was on top of mind. You know, this was–what we were able to witness…at this event was…her focus on…food insecurity.”
ABC's @CeciliaVega: "He said, 'Jackie, are you here? Where is Jackie? She must not be here.'"
KJP: "No, I totally understand. I just–I just explained. She was on top of mind. You know, this was–what we were able to witness…at this event was…her focus on…food insecurity." pic.twitter.com/jVri0ExX9i
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
CNN reporter Phil Mattingly pressed further, saying he was attempting to understand why Biden would look around the room for a dead representative.
“I’m trying to get my head around the response. [Walorski] was top of mind for [Biden] & her family was…here and that’s what he was thinking about? Why was he looking for her?” he asked.
Dancing around the obvious fact that Biden had another cognitive lapse, Jean-Pierre responded: “I think people can understand…when someone is at top of mind.”
CNN's @Phil_Mattingly: "I'm trying to get my head around the response. [Walorski] was top of mind for [Biden] & her family was…here & that's what he was thinking about? Why was he looking for her?"
KJP: "I think people can understand…when someone is at top of mind." pic.twitter.com/Hy0MKWTamx
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
Not satisfied with Jean-Pierre’s dodge, CBS reporter Steven Portnoy kept probing, and asked if Biden was “confused,” prompting Jean-Pierre to become frustrated.
“I’m sorry to do this, but I’m compelled to ask…one more time…the question about Congresswoman Walorski,” he began.
“I’m not sure why,” Jean-Pierre snapped. “Why? Why one more time?”
.@CBSNewsRadio's @StevenPortnoy: "I'm sorry to do this, but I'm compelled to ask…one more time…the question about Congresswoman Walorski."
KJP: "I'm not sure why. Why? Why one more time?"
Portnoy: "Frankly…the memory of [Walorski] & history requires some clarity here." pic.twitter.com/Yuwou7MeUt
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
“Can you explain where the mistake was made? Did the President–was [he] confused? Was there something…in the teleprompter…he didn’t recognize? Can you just help us understand?” Portnoy asked.
“I mean, you’re jumping to a lot of conclusions,” Jean-Pierre argued, claiming once again that Walorski was “on top of mind.”
.@CBSNewsRadio's @StevenPortnoy: "Can you explain where the mistake was made? Did the President–was [he] confused? Was there something…in the teleprompter…he didn't recognize? Can you just help us understand?"
KJP: "I mean, you're jumping to a lot of conclusions" pic.twitter.com/rrvZyFKUJ0
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
When asked if the White House would provide a transcript of the event for clarity, Jean-Pierre pushed back, claiming releasing the script is “unnecessary.”
.@CBSNewsRadio's @StevenPortnoy: "Would you…release the prepared remarks that [Biden] had…so we can understand?"
KJP: "I'm not understanding why that would be necessary…Many of us have gone through that…time where someone is on top of mind & you call them out." pic.twitter.com/4U26UKpGDt
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
Washington Post’s Matt Viser got more to the point of the matter, asking why Biden would think “she’s living and in the room.”
Jean-Pierre continued dodging, claiming such a faux pas “is not an unusual scenario.”
WashPost's @MViser: "I think we all…get why [Walorski's] top of mind. You've made that case pretty effectively…[W]hy…does [Biden]t think…she's living & in the room?"
KJP: "I don't find that confusing. I think many…can speak to [that]…That is not an unusual scenario" pic.twitter.com/TsRlSlhsJQ
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
Newsmax reporter James Rosen noted that just because somebody – particularly a deceased individual – is “on top of mind,” that doesn’t mean they think that person is in the room.
“I have John Lennon top of mind just about every day but I’m not looking around for him anywhere,” Rosen quipped.
Jean-Pierre, again, dodged the essence of his point: “When you sign a bill for John Lennon–Lennon as president, then we can have this conversation.”
Newsmax's @JamesRosenTV: "I have John Lennon top of mind just about every day but I'm not looking around for him anywhere."
KJP: "When you sign a bill for John Lennon–Lennon as president, then we can have this conversion." pic.twitter.com/VXNJAvfDqT
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
The room soon devolved into bedlam, with Jean-Pierre looking blankly on as reporters noted Biden’s mental lapses were happening with “increasing frequency” and asked if the White House would apologize instead of “making excuses.”
CHAOS in the Briefing Room as KJP tries to escape Walorski Q's w/help from lapdop USA Today reporter…Other reporter: "These moments of confusion are happening w/increasing frequency."
EWTN's Owen Jensen: "Why don't you just apologize? Sounds like you're making excuses." pic.twitter.com/EUizBLTnwW
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
Another reporter asked if Biden referenced Walorski “appropriately,” but Jean-Pierre tried steering the topic back to the event itself, a conference about hunger and nutrition.
“I think we have to remember that, you know, this was an important event today,” she claimed. “This was an event about food security. This was about how we’re going to take the steps to eradicate hunger by 2030.”
.@PhilipWegmann: "Does [Biden] believe that, in his reference to the late Rep. Walorski…he handled that reference appropriately or is this something that he would like to get back?"
KJP: "Get–what? Like, to get back–what?"
Wegmann: "I mean, he said, 'where is Jackie?'" pic.twitter.com/EmpcHvEOl4
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) September 28, 2022
This is just another absolute train wreck by the Biden administration.
Watch the full WH press briefing:
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