Biden Calls Doocy After “Stupid Son of a B—” Hot Mic, Says “Nothing Personal”; Psaki Has No Answer on 50K Migrants Released Into U.S.

On 1/25/2022, Press Secretary Psaki confirmed Biden had called Fox News reporter Peter Doocy after being caught on a hot mic the previous day calling him a “stupid son of a b—” following a question about inflation. Biden told Doocy “it’s nothing personal, pal.” Psaki also could not explain why single adult male migrants were being mass-released into the U.S. after border crossings, had no answer on 47,000 migrants who failed to report to ICE, could not say what Biden was doing on a day with nothing on his public schedule, and had no idea when Biden would address the American public on Russia-Ukraine.

”Nothing Personal, Pal”

On 1/24/2022, Biden had been caught on a live microphone calling Doocy a “stupid son of a b—” after the reporter asked whether inflation would be a “political liability ahead of the midterms.” Psaki confirmed Biden called Doocy within about an hour. “He called my cell phone,” Doocy recounted. “He said, it’s nothing personal, pal. And we went back and forth, and we were talking about just kind of moving forward.”

Psaki confirmed the call. “The President called him. He conveyed to him that it was nothing personal, man, and also acknowledged that all of you were going to ask him a range of questions,” she said.

Doocy took the episode in stride. “Nobody has fact-checked it yet and said it’s not true,” he joked.

Mass Release of Single Adult Migrants

A reporter presented video footage of “federally contracted buses dropping off dozens of migrants at a parking garage” in Brownsville, Texas. “What you’ll quickly notice is these are all single adults being released, almost all of them men. No children, no family units,” the reporter described.

Psaki acknowledged the releases were “consistent with our policy” — moving migrants “to different detention facilities where they wait for next steps in the immigration process.”

The reporter pressed: “Between March and August, DHS says more than 47,000 of these migrants that were given notices to report did not show up. So why let them into the U.S. unsupervised in the first place?”

Psaki offered only: “We have stringent protocols and processes that we implement here.” She could not explain the 47,000 no-shows.

Nothing on the Schedule

A reporter noted Biden had nothing on his public schedule aside from his daily intelligence briefing. “Can you shed any light on how he’s spending his day?” the reporter asked.

“This morning, I think he had some policy meetings, also a PDB meeting. Later this afternoon, I think he’s doing some remarks review,” Psaki said. “There are some days that we spend some time doing internal meetings and discussions with policy experts.”

No Timeline on Russia Address

With Russian troops massed on Ukraine’s border, a reporter asked when Americans should expect Biden to address the nation about potential consequences — including the possibility of U.S. service members being deployed. “I don’t have anything to predict in terms of a public speech,” Psaki said, noting only that Biden had given a “two-hour press conference just a few days ago.”

When asked whether Biden had changed his view of Putin since their June 2021 Geneva summit — when he said “it’s clearly not in anybody’s interest for us to be in a new cold war” — Psaki pushed back. “I don’t actually think that’s at all what the President said. He conveyed it wouldn’t happen overnight."

"Has a Hashtag Ever Worked?”

A reporter noted that Secretary of State Blinken had tweeted “I #StandWithUkraine” and asked: “Has that ever worked at stopping an authoritarian regime from doing anything? A hashtag?”

Psaki defended the approach. “Unlike the last administration, we don’t think Twitter is the only means of engaging or negotiating,” she said. “But it is important for us to convey to the Ukrainian people, who do view commentary through a range of forums, that we stand with them.”

Democrats Criticize Biden’s Inner Circle

A reporter raised criticism from fellow Democrats that Biden had “surrounded himself with loyal aides who have left the President ill-served.” Senator Manchin had been quoted saying “sometimes the box cars are empty.” Psaki said she didn’t “really even understand that quote” and defended the team by noting she was “new to President Biden’s orbit” and found him consistently engaged.

Key Takeaways

Biden called Doocy after the “stupid son of a b—” hot-mic incident, saying “it’s nothing personal, pal.”
Video showed mass release of single adult male migrants from federally contracted buses in Texas; over 47,000 migrants given notices to report between March and August never showed up.
Biden had nothing on his public schedule; Psaki said he was doing “internal meetings” and “remarks review.”
Psaki had no timeline for when Biden would address the nation on Russia-Ukraine, with over 100,000 Russian troops on the border.
A reporter asked if Secretary Blinken’s #StandWithUkraine hashtag had “ever worked at stopping an authoritarian regime.”

Transcript Highlights

The following is transcribed from the video audio (unverified — AI-generated from audio).

Within about an hour of that exchange, he called my cell phone. He said, it’s nothing personal, pal.
These are all single adults being released, almost all of them men. No children, no family units.
Between March and August, more than 47,000 of these migrants given notices to report did not show up. So why let them in unsupervised? We have stringent protocols.
The President has nothing on his schedule today aside from the PDB. He had some policy meetings. Later this afternoon, some remarks review.
Has a hashtag ever worked at stopping an authoritarian regime? Unlike the last administration, we don’t think Twitter is the only means of engaging.
Sometimes the box cars are empty. I didn’t really even understand that quote.

Full transcript: 1321 words transcribed via Whisper AI.