Ex-Biden press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre’s word salad answers baffle New Yorker reporter during train-wreck interview
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre left a veteran interviewer baffled during a meandering defense of former President Joe Biden’s leadership — an exchange that quickly went viral Monday.
“I’m not sure what you’re saying,” an exasperated Isaac Chotiner, staff writer for The New Yorker , told Jean-Pierre as she failed to give clear answers to questions, including examples of how Democrats “betrayed” Biden in the weeks leading up to his quitting the race last year.
The back-and-forth came as Jean-Pierre promoted her new memoir , “Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines.”
The 51-year-old ex-spokeswoman for Biden, who announced in June that she was quitting the Democratic Party , used the sit-down to double down on her claims, though her answers grew meandering and evasive — producing an uncomfortable interview.
“You feel like you had to leave the Democratic Party because of the way it treated Joe Biden,” Chotiner said to Jean-Pierre.
“How did it treat Joe Biden?”
“I call it a betrayal,” Jean-Pierre told Chotiner.
“It was an all-out, full-on campaign to embarrass him, to push him out… And I just thought to myself, this man is one of the most decent people that I know. And objectively, it was a good presidency.”
Chotiner then pointed out that Jean-Pierre herself had called Trump a “threat to democracy,” asking how she could justify leaving the party at such a critical moment.
That prompted a rambling response that quickly drew attention online.
“Well, I mean, I just laid it out,” she replied. “There was an obvious campaign. You just had to watch.”
When Chotiner asked why Democratic leaders pushed Biden to quit the race, Jean-Pierre said: “Because they believed that he needed to step aside.” She then launched into a broader critique of her party’s priorities.
“This is very layered,” she said.
“You have to think about how I’m thinking about this as a Black woman who is part of the LGBTQ community, and living in this time where I also don’t think Democrats right now, Democrats’ leadership, is protecting vulnerable people in the way that it should.”
Chotiner, sounding increasingly confused, replied: “Sorry, I’m not trying to be dense. I’m a little unclear about what this has to do with Democratic leaders and many Democrats thinking that Joe Biden was going to lose to Donald Trump.”
Jean-Pierre doubled down: “Nobody knows anything. Nobody knows what would’ve happened. People also thought that if you replace Joe Biden we were going to win, or have a better chance of winning. Millions of people who showed up in 2020 didn’t show up in 2024. There was an incumbency issue as well.”
“I’m not sure what you’re saying,” Chotiner interjected.
The exchange, which unfolded over several pages, captured the ex-press secretary’s frustration with the Democratic establishment but also her difficulty articulating why she saw the president’s downfall as a personal betrayal.
Chotiner pressed again, asking whether “it should have happened or shouldn’t have happened.”
Jean-Pierre responded: “Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. I don’t think it should have happened. I believe we should have fought to make sure Joe Biden and Kamala Harris won. That’s what I believed.”
When the conversation turned to Biden’s health and his ability to serve through 2029, Jean-Pierre maintained that she “did not see anything that would’ve given me concern,” even as she acknowledged the president’s age.
“He was older,” she said.
“He talked about not speaking as well as he used to. But he was engaged, on top of policy, challenging his staff.”
Chotiner reminded her of Biden’s halting answers in his post-debate interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos — a moment that many Democrats cited as confirmation of his decline.
“When I watched that, I thought, ‘This man should not be president for four more years,’” Chotiner said.
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It's funny to see the progressive church officially recognize what the whole world has been saying she appeared public. She is incoherent speaker who was overwhelmed in her job. Look at these quotes from the Politico Article where Democrats have a field day with her:
"A car crash is fascinating to watch. She was the top communicator for the president of the United States and she can’t get through basic interviews”
“Every time she falls back on identity politics instead of actually answering questions, she reinforces the worst stereotype about Democrats”
“It's like watching Mike Tyson fight a baby”
“It’s like watching a toddler jump into the deep end of the pool”
“She doesn’t seem to have any idea what she’s arguing”
We all saw it. Just like we all saw Biden falling apart mentally and physically. But the cult pretended it was all just fine and dandy...
“I’m not sure what you’re saying,” Chotiner interjected.
Neither was anyone else, ever