White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre repeatedly refused to answer questions during a grilling about a recent statement by Democrat President Joe Biden.
Jean-Pierre faced intense questioning over Biden’s claim that he had reached a “secret side deal” with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) regarding aid for Ukraine.
During Monday’s press briefing, Newsmax White House correspondent James Rosen repeatedly pressed Jean-Pierre as she refused to answer if Biden’s statement was true.
Another White House reporter questioned Jean-Pierre on Biden’s claim that he had reached a deal with McCarthy regarding aid for Ukraine.
After signing the short-term government funding bill into law Saturday, Biden lamented the lack of funding for Ukraine.
The president urged Republicans to “keep their word” on supporting the foreign country.
Despite a deal not appearing to have been made on aiding Ukraine, Jean-Pierre refused to “go beyond what the president said” regarding Biden’s statement.
As Slay News previously reported, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has accused McCarthy of making a “secret side deal” with Biden and the Democrats to keep funding Ukraine.
“I guess I’m just trying to understand what the president meant when he said, ‘We just made a deal,’” the reporter said.
“What I am saying to you is that we have seen bipartisan support from Congress to continue the funding in Ukraine,” Jean-Pierre said.
“That’s what we expect and that’s what we want to continue to see.
“We’ve heard from Speaker McCarthy himself just yesterday that he wants to continue that support, and that’s what we want to see moving forward.”
“Is it possible the president made a deal that you don’t know about?” she asked.
“I’m just saying I’m not going to go beyond what the president said,” the press secretary said.
Rosen then chimed in to confront Jean-Pierre on whether a deal had been made.
“So is that true?” Rosen asked.
“I’m not gonna go beyond what the president said,” Jean-Pierre replied.
“So you won’t say what he said was true,” Rosen said.
“I’m not gonna go beyond what the president said,” she said.
“You’re declining to say what he said was true,” Rosen pressed.
“I just answered,” Jean-Pierre said as she moved on to the next reporter.
WATCH:
What DEAL did Biden make regarding #Ukraine?
'Why Would The President Say He Made A Deal He Didn't?': Reporter Grills Karine Jean-Pierre pic.twitter.com/F1dv4f6NRN
— 🩺Jenny BSN RN LMT🩺 (@WeAre32937) October 2, 2023
Chaos abounds as Karine Jean-Pierre repeatedly declines to say whether Biden was telling the truth when he said he had a "deal" on Ukraine aid:
"You're declining to say that what [Biden] said was true!?" pic.twitter.com/KVKogyXkoR
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) October 2, 2023
Biden and McCarthy reached a deal on a 47-day package to continue funding the government until Nov. 17.
The bill, which passed momentarily before the expiration of the 2023 fiscal year, consisted of no new funding to aid Ukraine.
The president told reporters last week he had no intention of speaking to McCarthy regarding a possible government shutdown.
However, the White House reportedly “kept in touch” with McCarthy throughout the day Saturday as Congress voted on the package, according to CNN.