White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre did clean-up during a Tuesday press briefing after facing backlash for responding to a question about antisemitism the previous day by pointing to “hate-fueled attacks” against Muslims.
“I want to make something clear at the top, because I understand how important moral clarity is especially at this time,” she said. “So when Jews are targeted because of their beliefs or their identity, when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish hatred, that is antisemitism and that is unacceptable. There is no place for antisemitism. Full stop. Period. This is important to the president, it is important to me, personally, and to everyone in the administration.”
CNN senior White House correspondent M.J. Lee asked the press secretary during a Monday briefing about President Joe Biden’s “level of concern” about the rise of antisemitism following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by terrorist organization Hamas. Jean-Pierre responded to the question by discussing the harassment the Muslim community has faced in recent weeks. (RELATED: Kirby, KJP Shoot Down Idea Of Deporting Foreigners Attending Pro-Hamas Protests)
After her train wreck of a comment yesterday where she denied the existence of threats against Jewish people, Jean-Pierre opens the press briefing today by saying that anti-Semitism is bad. https://t.co/Kwx5pJXZqR pic.twitter.com/3vwS72m2ui
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) October 24, 2023
“We have not seen any credible threats, I know there’s always questions about credible threats and so I just want to make sure that’s out there. But look, Muslim and those perceived to be Muslim have endured a disproportionate number of hate-fueled attacks, and certainly President Biden understands that many of our Muslim, Arab, Arab American and Palestinian American loved ones and neighbors are worried about the hate being directed at their communities and that is something you heard the president speak to in his address just last Thursday,” Jean-Pierre said.
The press secretary told Politico that she “misheard” the question during the Monday briefing, adding that she feels strongly about the administration’s work to combat antisemitism.
“We must ensure that there is no place for hate in America. Not against Jews. Not against Muslims. Not against Arab Americans. Not against Palestinian Americans. Not against anyone,” Jean-Pierre said Tuesday.