Since being tapped as the White House Press Secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre has been a never-ending vein of comedy gold to conservative writers, pundits, and comedians. Once one gets past the idea that she works in the White House, her engagements with the press are interesting to watch and often quite fun.
Yesterday was not one of those days. Along with the characteristics of incompetence, ineptitude, and clumsiness, we can now add the adjectives cruel, callous, and obtuse to the list of her descriptors. Yesterday’s dumpster fire of an appearance on MSNBC didn’t just take the cake; it cleaned out the bakery.
Jean-Pierre was talking about the developing situation in Jordan following an incident in which three soldiers were killed by an unmanned drone strike. For the record, their names are Sgt. William Rivers, 46, Spc. Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, and Spc. Breonna Moffett, 23.
Fortunately, you do not have to sit through much of this tripe before coming to the pertinent moment:
This was not merely an issue of Jean-Pierre once again being unable to string together two words without needing to call 911. I am not sure what is more disgusting, the fact that she could not stammer out the words “three brave soldiers” or “three brave heroes,” or the fact that she tried to stumble to the goalposts by saying that the service members lost their lives defending the Biden administration.
Jean-Pierre’s ineptitude is not news. But at this point, even a serial bumbler such as herself should be able to navigate a media hit, particularly one on a friendly network like MSNBC. It isn’t that Jean-Pierre couldn’t handle the situation. She simply did not care enough to do so with dignity and respect for those who lost their lives. Like her boss, she just doesn’t give a damn.
The internet agrees. Here are some of the responses:
Our service members swear an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States. They are not fighting “on behalf of” the Biden team.
This is incredibly disrespectful. https://t.co/66fWflPF9i
— Rep. Pat Fallon (@RepPatFallon) January 29, 2024
They’re fighting for our country not for any administration… Wtf is wrong with her
— Christina Pushaw 🐊 🇺🇸 (@ChristinaPushaw) January 29, 2024
It truly is amazing to see that after almost two years on the job who it’s possible that Karine Jean-Pierre is only get worse at her job… https://t.co/7dJHVXzphb
— Joe Concha (@JoeConchaTV) January 29, 2024
Fighting on behalf of “this administration”?
These are soldiers fighting on behalf of their country. They are not a Praetorian Guard whose job it is to keep Emperor Joe Biden propped up and in power.
— The Sarcasticat (@TheSarcasticist) January 29, 2024
American Wire reported that as of Monday, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communication John Kirby did not know if Biden would attend the dignified transfer of the fallen soldier’s bodies. When queried, Kirby merely said, “I don’t have anything on his schedule to speak to.”
Fox News notes that Biden did contact the families of the slain service members on Tuesday after they completed the appropriate paperwork. Perhaps that is SOP for a presidential phone call, but given Jean-Pierre’s remarks and Biden’s track record, especially in the Middle East, one would think that the White House would not be so thick.
This is not simply another instance of “Oh well, that’s ol’ Karine for you!” or “There goes Brandon again!” It isn’t just that the administration is incompetent and tone-deaf. It is also too arrogant and self-absorbed to care.