(Carmine Sabia) White House press secretary Jen Psaki had an eventful final briefing as she was heckled off the podium on her last day.
by Carmine Sabia, May 14th, 2022
It happened on Friday, Psaki’s last day on the job, when Today News Africa White House correspondent Simon Ateba shouted about fair access in the briefing room.
“Why don’t you take questions from across the room?” he shouted as Associated Press reporter Zeke Miller was asking about the ongoing baby formula shortage.
“Why don’t you take questions from across the room? Because that’s not what you’ve done for the past 15 months,” he said again.
Psaki and the other reporters initially ignored him but he continued to shout during the briefing.
“Jen, can I ask you a question from the back?” he shouted. “Jen, can I ask you a question from the back?”
That got NPR reporter Tamara Keith to look at him and implore him to stop.
But Ateba was undeterred as he continued shouting until he got a response from Psaki, who has been criticized in the past for only taking questions from reporters in the front of the room.
“Simon, if you can respect your colleagues and other media and reporters in here, that would be greatly appreciated,” she said.
The New York Post reported.
Since covering the Biden administration, Ateba has frequently sparred with Psaki — going as far to accuse her of lying about coronavirus-related travel restrictions in December.
“You are saying something that is false,” Ateba shouted at Psaki, speaking once again over his colleagues.
“I just answered — Simon, I answered a question on this,” Psaki said as he continued to attempt to get his question in.“Let’s let [Voice of America reporter] Patsy [Widakuswara] ask a question,” added Psaki, who later scolded Ateba when he persisted.
“It’s not effective to scream over your colleagues in here,” the press secretary said. “Let’s — let’s — let Patsy ask the question.”
The same month, Ateba accused the restrictions of being “racist” as they targeted southern African countries. The African journalist also has a history of interrupting briefing guests, including Biden’s chief medical adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci.
Last month During the White House press briefing, Eternal World Television Network Owen Jensen interrupted Psaki several times in an attempt to ask about pro-life taxpayers funding abortion, but never got called on.
“You’re going down the row, and you’re giving these people five and six questions. I get one, don’t I? And the people back here too,” Jensen said, initially shouting over another reporter’s question.
“Sir, we don’t … I think if you could sit here and be respectful of your colleagues here, that might work better,” Psaki said. “Sir, sir, I think he’s the next question,” Psaki said, pointing at a different reporter instead of answering his question.
“You’re being very disrespectful,” someone else in the briefing room was heard saying, while Jensen continued to try to ask his question.
Jensen tried asking his question over and over again throughout the White House briefing.
“So, again, my question: Why does President Biden believe pro-life taxpayers, Catholics among them, should fund Title X clinics that advise women how to get abortions?” he said, speaking over another reporter.
Psaki proceeded to ignore him as she listened to a different reporter’s question.
Jensen asked his question two more times but did not call on him or answer his question.
And this week Psaki spoke out about old tweets from incoming White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in which she claimed the 2016 presidential election and 2018 election for governor of Georgia were stolen.
“Stolen emails, stolen drone, stolen election …..welcome to the world of #unpresidented Trump,” she said in December 2016.
Stolen emails, stolen drone, stolen election …..welcome to the world of #unpresidented Trump https://t.co/NI7vqPV6cu
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) December 18, 2016
“Reminder: Brian Kemp stole the gubernatorial election from Georgians and Stacey Abrams,” she said in April 2020.
Reminder: Brian Kemp stole the gubernatorial election from Georgians and Stacey Abrams.https://t.co/ZIKGTd6U1v
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) April 2, 2020
When speaking of the tweet on the election of Gov. Brian Kemp in Georgia Psaki said to Mediate, “We all agree the 2018 election in Georgia is settled. And we’re also all concerned about voter suppression issues, including the President. Kemp won and she sees that tweet as having oversimplified the problem.”
And on the 2016 presidential election Psaki said, Jean-Pierre “has affirmed that Donald Trump won in 2016, too. Like so many of us, Karine was concerned about the U.S. intelligence community’s unanimous finding that Russia intervened to help Trump. But he won.”
“Just like four years later Joe Biden won the most votes of anyone in American history,” she said. “She’s aligned with the President that people should admit who won regardless of preference.”
But there was also the issue of the new press secretary in an old clip when she appeared on MSNBC calling Fox News, who she will now have to work with on a near daily basis, a “racist” organization.
It came on March 15, 2020 when Jean-Pierre appeared on the MSNBC show “AM Joy,” with host Joy Reid on a panel that included Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin and former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele as they were talking about Fox News’ coverage of what was then the new COVID-19 pandemic.
“Fox News was racist before #coronavirus, they are racist during coronavirus, and Fox News will be racist after the coronavirus,” she said on Twitter, sharing a clip of her appearance.
"Fox News was racist before #coronavirus, they are racist during coronavirus, and Fox News will be racist after the coronavirus" @JoyAnnReid #AMJoy #MSNBC #SundayMorning pic.twitter.com/0oOQWqkSE8
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@K_JeanPierre) March 15, 2020
During the interview she called the network “racist” and accused them of endangering the lives of Asian-Americans.
“[Fox News] was racist before coronavirus, they are racist during the coronavirus, Fox News will be racist after the coronavirus. So there is nothing new here. I think the difference is they are all-in on being state TV for Donald Trump, and so they will continue to give the misinformation,” she said.
“The danger is, so yes, you have Asian Americans right now whose lives are seriously in danger. And, you have their own viewers who can now, the ones who are 60 and older who are watching, this is a health crisis that we’re in, this is a global pandemic, as the WHO have said, and they’re putting their lives in dangers,” the incoming press secretary said.
“What they’re putting out there is going to hurt people, and not help them,” she said.
Psaki again defended the new press secretary.
“This is a years-old clip of Karine, referring to an opinion host – not a reporter – when she was not in government and not speaking on behalf of the president,” she said.
“As she has shown at the White House many times already, including in the Briefing Room, she will continue to follow the guidance of the President in engaging with a range of reporters from a broad range of outlets, including Fox, even when there are different points of view,” she said.
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