White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre apologized for the White House’s error about former Democratic New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson’s family following his passing.
President Joe Biden’s initial press release falsely claimed Richardson is survived by a daughter named Heather following his passing Saturday at the age of 75. The White House removed the error after learning Richardson is not survived by a daughter.
“Can you walk us through how these press releases are fact-checked. He signs off on them in the end and then in this case, how this error was made,” CBS News White House correspondent Weijia Jiang asked.
“So look, we apologize for the error, certainly,” Jean-Pierre said. “That is not something that, you know, we want to do. We want to make sure that we get this information out clearly and in a straightforward way to the American people. So that was not done intentionally and certainly when we realized that error, it was removed from the website. We do have fact-checkers here, we do have multiple people who take a look at the press releases, especially from the president. This was just a miss, unfortunately, and we apologize for that miss.”
The press secretary offered the White House’s condolences to Richardson’s family and vowed that this type of error would not be made again. (RELATED: Peter Doocy Asks KJP Why 80-Year-Old Biden Is Treated ‘Like A Baby’)
“Bill Richardson was a friend to the president, and so again, we apologize for that error and certainly that is not something that we want to see happen. It is not a common occurrence, right, that happens from this White House,” she continued.
The updated statement about Richardson reads that he is survived by his wife, Barbara, who he married in 1972.
“Bill and I crossed paths for the first time decades ago, when he was a staffer on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which I served on as Senator,” part of the statement reads. “Over the years, I saw firsthand his passion for politics, love for America, and unflagging belief that, with respect and good faith, people can come together across any difference, no matter how vast. He was a patriot and true original, and will not be forgotten. Jill and I send our love to his family, including his wife of over 50 years, Barbara.”
The New York Times issued a correction Tuesday after misstating that Richardson is survived by a daughter.