Biden Claims Border Numbers “Came Way Down”; KJP Repeats “Beat Medicare” Gaffe in Final Briefing

In the final days of the Biden presidency, two moments captured the administration’s struggles with messaging and credibility. First, President Biden made the disputed claim that border crossing numbers “came way down” under his watch, while also appearing to confuse Secret Service agents with Border Patrol agents. Then, in her final appearance at the White House podium, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre inadvertently repeated Biden’s most infamous debate gaffe — “we were finally able to beat Medicare” — before being unable to name who would lead the Democratic Party after Biden left office.

Biden: “When I Became President, the Numbers Came Way Down”

In a discussion about border security during his final week in office, Biden pushed back on criticism of his immigration record.

“Look, let’s get something on mind about the border,” Biden said. “When I became president, the numbers came way down.”

Biden then referenced his efforts to secure more personnel at the border, though he appeared to misspeak about the type of agents involved: “We had a circumstance where I pushed very hard from bipartisan agreement to put more people on the border, more Secret Service agents.”

He also accused Trump of sabotaging bipartisan border legislation: “And guess what? He’s on the phone saying, ‘Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Make me look bad.’”

The claim that border numbers declined under Biden was sharply disputed by critics who pointed to the record-breaking levels of illegal border crossings during the first three years of his presidency. While encounters did decline in 2024 after Biden issued executive orders restricting asylum claims, the cumulative total of border crossings under his administration far exceeded those under Trump’s first term.

KJP Repeats the “Beat Medicare” Gaffe

In what became the most talked-about moment of her final briefing, Karine Jean-Pierre appeared to repeat Biden’s most infamous verbal stumble from the June 2024 presidential debate, when the president said “we finally beat Medicare” instead of completing his intended thought.

“As you asked me about this particular question, look, we were able to beat Medicare,” Jean-Pierre said. “That is something that this president was able to do.”

She then appeared to catch herself and attempted a correction: “Excuse me, with dealing with everything we have to do with, what — if we finally beat Medicare.”

The original debate moment in June 2024 had been widely seen as a turning point in Biden’s candidacy, raising serious questions about his cognitive sharpness and ultimately contributing to his withdrawal from the presidential race. Jean-Pierre’s repetition of the same phrase during her final briefing was seen by commentators as an inadvertently fitting bookend to the administration.

”Who’s the Leader of the Democratic Party?”

A reporter then asked Jean-Pierre the pointed question: between next Monday (inauguration day) and 2028, who would lead the Democratic Party?

Jean-Pierre visibly struggled with the question. “That is honestly, that is for people much smarter than I to make that assessment, that decision,” she said. “Obviously, voters will decide. That is not something for me to decide.”

She tried to redirect: “I could say right now, in this moment, in this room, as I’m looking at the clock as it’s counting down because we have to leave shortly, you have the president, President Joe Biden, who is obviously the president and the leader of the Democratic Party.”

When pressed further, Jean-Pierre grew flustered: “I cannot predict the future, so that is not something that I’m going to do from here.”

The reporter pressed: “So, no leader of the party?”

“That’s not what I said,” Jean-Pierre responded.

“Well, it’s not President Biden,” the reporter noted.

Jean-Pierre replied: “My gosh, I’m regretting this right now.”

The exchange highlighted the Democratic Party’s leadership vacuum heading into the post-Biden era, with no clear consensus figure emerging after Kamala Harris’s defeat in the 2024 election.

Key Takeaways

• President Biden claimed border crossing numbers “came way down” under his presidency and appeared to confuse “Secret Service agents” with Border Patrol agents.
• In her final White House briefing, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre repeated Biden’s infamous “beat Medicare” gaffe from the June 2024 debate.
• When asked who would lead the Democratic Party after Biden, Jean-Pierre was unable to name anyone, saying the question was “for people much smarter than I.”
• The moments underscored the messaging and leadership challenges that defined the final days of the Biden administration.