Jean-Pierre: Biden 'Loves Taking Your Questions'; on Commander's 12th Bite: 'Refer You to the Secret Service' (October 4, 2023)

A reporter at the White House repeated a familiar request. “And finally, this is my every-two-months request: He just spent time — the President just spent time with the pool,” the reporter said at the briefing on Oct. 4, 2023 [1].

“Could we just get him to come out here into this room for those of us who are not a member of the pool to ask him questions?” the reporter asked [1].

“Well, look, the President loves taking your questions. He’s done it a couple times this week. I don’t have anything to commit to all of you,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, according to the official White House transcript [1].

The video above shows the exchanges at the Oct. 4, 2023, briefing. Quotes are from the official White House transcript and the Associated Press via KUTV [1][2].

”Commander Biden Biting a Staffer Again”

Another reporter asked about the president’s dog. “There are some new pictures of Commander Biden biting a staffer again. How many times has that dog bitten the Bidens?” [1]

“I would — I would refer you to the Secret Service and also the First Lady’s Office,” Jean-Pierre said [1].

“Okay. It’s the 12th known incident of this dog biting a White House staffer. A lot of times when that happens, there’s a lawsuit. Isn’t the President worried about getting sued?” the reporter asked. “I would refer you to the Secret Service or the First Lady’s Office,” Jean-Pierre said [1].

”An Untenable Situation for Illinois”

That reporter had started with the border. “The governor of Illinois has written to President Biden to say ‘…the federal government’s lack of intervention and coordination at the border has created an untenable situation for Illinois.’ Does anybody outside of the White House think the immigration policy is working?” [1]

Jean-Pierre blamed Republicans. “I just mentioned that the President requested $4 billion for supplemental funding to address what we’re seeing at the border,” she said. “And Republicans continue to block us. They do. They continue to block us.” [1]

“Nobody Is Loving Anything”

The briefing came the day after the House removed Speaker Kevin McCarthy. “Is any part of the West Wing here just loving the fact that Republicans don’t appear to be able to govern the one part of the government that they actually control?” the reporter asked [1].

“Nobody is loving anything when it’s — when we’re not — when we’re not able to deliver for the American people. Nobody is loving that,” Jean-Pierre said [1].

Earlier, a reporter asked, “But is there any regret that, you know, Kevin McCarthy was a known quantity, but with this next person that it will be even harder to work with?” [1]

“And I — you know, I don’t want to speak for every American across the country. But I would say the majority of Americans are sick and tired of the infighting that they’re seeing in the House right now,” Jean-Pierre said [1].

Another reporter asked, “In any of the meetings about this in the last 24 hours, has anybody in the West Wing heard anybody talking about the possibility of Speaker Trump?” [1]

“This is something for House Republicans to figure out. This is something for them to fix. We’re not going to get involved in the speakership,” Jean-Pierre said. “The President doesn’t have a vote. No one here has a vote.” [1]

“Can Those Two Align?”

A reporter Jean-Pierre called Peter pressed her on Ukraine aid. “Karine, if the President is confident that the Congress is going to pass the necessary funds to continue providing aid to Ukraine, why is there the need to have discussions about an alternate vehicle to provide that funding?” [1]

“I’m not going to get beyond or go beyond what the President said,” Jean-Pierre said [1].

“I guess I’m confused because the President — you — we said here that the President was confident that the aid would continue. But today, the President himself conceded he was worried about that. Are those two — can those two align?” the reporter asked [1].

Asked later about tying Ukraine aid to border security, Jean-Pierre said, “I literally just answered this question about 10 minutes ago.” [1]

By the Numbers

12: known incidents of Commander biting a White House staffer, per a reporter [1].
10: other times Commander bit or attacked Secret Service personnel between October 2022 and January, per Homeland Security records [2].
$4 billion: the border supplemental Biden requested, per Jean-Pierre [1].
2: German shepherds the Bidens moved out of the White House [2].

What Happened Next

The first lady’s office said Commander was gone. “President Joe Biden’s dog, Commander, is ‘not presently on the White House campus’ following a series of biting incidents involving White House staff and U.S. Secret Service officers, a spokesperson for First Lady Jill Biden said late Wednesday,” the AP reported [2].

“The statement came hours after White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was asked Wednesday’s daily briefing about a fresh allegation that Commander had bitten a White House staffer,” the AP reported [2].

“Commander is the second of Biden’s dogs at the White House that behaved aggressively, including biting Secret Service personnel and White House staff. They eventually sent the first dog, a German shepherd named Major, to live with friends in Delaware after those incidents,” the AP reported [2].

For the Biden-McCarthy Ukraine “deal” two days earlier, see HYGO News’ page on Oct. 2, 2023. For Rep. Mike Johnson pressing Attorney General Merrick Garland weeks before he became speaker, see the page on Sept. 20, 2023.