Karine Jean-Pierre says it’s to Biden if he serves ‘all eight years’ until he is 86
White House plays AL cleanup at 2024 Joe announcement: Karine Jean-Pierre says it’s ‘up to’ Biden if he serves a ‘full eight years’ – then forced to walk back quickly
- Jean-Pierre said she learned Tuesday morning that Biden was running for president
- Said she “didn’t want to get ahead of Biden” when asked about a full term
- She then tweeted, “If reelected, she would serve all 8 years” of two terms
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to say President Joe Biden would serve his entire term if re-elected at a briefing Tuesday — then quickly clarified the comment online.
Jean-Pierre answered questions hours after Biden announced he would seek re-election in a three-minute video. That came during a White House press briefing where the very first question was about the Hatch Act — and where Jean-Pierre repeatedly tried to evade questions that might be necessary to navigate the law’s nuances of politicization by federal employees.
When asked if Biden, 80, planned to serve “all eight years” if elected to a second term, she replied, “I’m just not going to get ahead of the president. That’s something for him to decide. I’m just not going to get ahead of it.’
She continued, “There’s a campaign for 2024. Anything related to that, I refer you to that.”
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre gave her first briefing since President Joe Biden announced his re-election campaign
The answer threatened to reveal a hint of doubt about the tenure of Biden, who at 80 is the oldest president in the country and would be the oldest president reelected next year. His new video features repeated shots of Vice President Kamala Harris.
Within minutes of the end of her briefing, Jean-Pierre tweeted: ‘As you know, we take compliance with the law seriously. So I wanted to make sure I didn’t go into 2024 more than is appropriate under the law. But I can confirm that if re-elected I would serve all 8 years.”
Jean-Pierre answered questions after the 80-year-old Biden announced he would seek a second term
That was in response to a tweet from Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich, who himself had tweeted the exchange, adding, “First press briefing since Biden announced 2024 reelection bid.”
She also indicated that the administration believes in the “rule of law” and intends to operate within the confines of the Hatch Act.
“The law provides for limited involvement of a few selected officials,” she said.
But she said any political action by taxpayers would be “in line with the norms of the past.”