(Madeleine Hubbard) Outgoing White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Thursday refused to condemn left-wing activists’ plans to protest for abortion rights at the homes of Supreme Court after a leaked draft surfaced this week of a majority opinion that would strike down Roe v. Wade.
by Madeleine Hubbard, May 5th, 2022
She also defended the leak as being about “women’s health care,” despite previously criticizing other leaks.
Thousands of people across the nation have been protesting the draft of the SCOTUS decision. Pro-choice activist groups such as “Ruth Sent Us” mapped out the Maryland and Virginia homes of the six conservative-leaning justices, whom they criticized as “extremist” and “Christian fundamentalist.” The group is planning a protest at the justices’ homes on May 11.
“Do you think that progressive activists that are now planning protests outside some of the justices’ houses are extreme?” Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy asked Psaki during the press briefing.
“Peaceful protest? No, peaceful protest is not extreme,” Psaki answered. She is leaving her position next week. Her deputy, Karine Jean-Pierre, will replace her.
“Some of these justices have young kids,” Doocy pointed out.
“Their neighbors are not all public figures. So would the president think about waving off activists who want to go into residential neighborhoods in Virginia and Maryland?” he asked.
“I think our view here is that peaceful protests – there’s a long history in the United States in the country of that. And we’ve certainly encouraged people to keep it peaceful and not resort to any level of violence,” Psaki answered.
“These activists posted a map with the home addresses of the Supreme Court justices. Is that the kind of thing the president wants to help your side make their point?” Doocy pressed further.
Psaki said President Joe Biden understands the high tensions from the leaked draft.
“The president’s view is that there’s a lot of passion, a lot of fear, a lot of sadness from many, many people across this country about what they saw in that leaked document,” she told Doocy.
“We obviously want people’s privacy to be respected,” she continued. “We want people to protest peacefully if they want to protest. That is certainly what the president’s view would be.”
“I don’t have an official US government position on where people protest,” she said.
“But I think we shouldn’t lose the point here. The reason people are protesting is because women across the country are worried about their fundamental rights that had been law for 50 years. Their rights to make choices about their own bodies and their own health care are at risk. That’s why people are protesting. They’re unhappy. They’re scared,” she added.
Doocy then asked Psaki several times about Biden’s opinion on whether he supports abortion up until the time of birth.
She replied that Biden “supports a women’s right to choose” and referred him to the presidents’ previous statements on abortion.
The Biden administration condemned the leaked opinion shortly after it was released.
When NBC News reporter Peter Alexander asked Psaki why the White House would not condemn the leak like previous ones, she said the conversation is not about the leak.
“What we think is happening here is there’s an effort to distract from what the actual issue here, which is fundamental rights,” she said, later adding, “What we’ve also seen, Peter, is many Republicans who are trying to overturn a woman’s fundamental rights try to make this about the leak. This is not about the leak. This is about women’s health care.”
Stillness in the Storm Editor: Why did we post this?
The news is important to all people because it is where we come to know new things about the world, which leads to the development of more life goals that lead to life wisdom. The news also serves as a social connection tool, as we tend to relate to those who know about and believe the things we do. With the power of an open truth-seeking mind in hand, the individual can grow wise and the collective can prosper.
– Justin
Not sure how to make sense of this? Want to learn how to discern like a pro? Read this essential guide to discernment, analysis of claims, and understanding the truth in a world of deception: 4 Key Steps of Discernment – Advanced Truth-Seeking Tools.
Stillness in the Storm Editor’s note: Did you find a spelling error or grammatical mistake? Send an email to [email protected], with the error and suggested correction, along with the headline and url. Do you think this article needs an update? Or do you just have some feedback? Send us an email at [email protected]. Thank you for reading.
Source:
Support our work! (Avoid Big Tech PayPal and Patreon)DIRECT DONATION
Leave a Reply