Newsmax White House correspondent James Rosen repeatedly pressed White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday as she refused to answer if Biden made a true statement.
Another White House reporter questioned Jean-Pierre on Biden’s claim that he had reached a deal with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy regarding aid for Ukraine. After signing the short-term government funding bill into law Saturday, the president lamented the lack of funding for Ukraine and urged Republicans to “keep their word” on supporting the foreign country.
Jean-Pierre refused to “go beyond what the president said” regarding Biden’s statement, despite a deal not appearing to have been made on aiding 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. That’s what we expect and that’s what we want to continue to see,” Jean-Pierre said. “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.
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Rosen then chimed in to confront Jean-Pierre on whether a deal had been made. (RELATED: Doocy Asks KJP If Biden Would Ever Consider Pulling A Fire Alarm To Escape Meeting)
“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.
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.