White House press secretary Jen Psaki responded to two reporters’ questions at a Friday press briefing regarding Republican South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham’s calls to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The first reporter asked Psaki whether the White House has an opinion on Graham calling Thursday for the Russian people to assassinate Putin via Twitter.
“That is not the position of the United States government and certainly not a statement you’d hear come from the mouth of anybody working in this administration,” Psaki responded.
A second reporter followed up, asking if President Joe Biden shares Graham’s view that there is “no peaceful resolution” to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
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“The president believes there continues to be a diplomatic path forward. That is the path forward that will help resolve what we’re seeing on the ground,” she said. “President Putin has the ability to de-escalate, we have left the door open for months now to be engaged through de-escalation if de-escalation occurs. Obviously humanitarian corridors, a ceasefire, those would all be steps that would be welcomed.”
“But no, we are not advocating for killing the leader of a foreign country or regime change.” Psaki added. “That is not the policy of the United States.” (RELATED: Republicans Slam Lindsey Graham After Calling For The Assassination Of Putin)
Graham also called for the assassination of Putin on Fox News’ “Hannity” on Thursday and for his imprisonment on “Fox and Friends” on Friday morning. The senator warned Thursday on Twitter that the Russian people will live in “darkness” and “abject poverty” under Putin’s continued regime.
Fox News’ Sean Hannity suggested Putin should be assassinated on his show Wednesday night, arguing that he “forfeit[ed] your right to live” following the deaths of over 2,000 Ukrainian civilians since Russia’s invasion of the country.
Fox News host Laura Ingraham called the senator’s remarks “dangerous and stupid” on Thursday’s episode of “The Ingraham Angle.”
“I don’t know why a sitting U.S. senator would be tweeting that out, it seems really dangerous and stupid to say that,” she told Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton. “And we like Lindsey Graham, but that’s just a stupid comment.”