White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was pressed on Thursday to explain the change in President Biden’s rhetoric on President-elect Donald Trump.
In an address to the American people, Biden said he spoke with Trump to congratulate him and assured there would be a peaceful transition of power. He also called for unity during the process.
"Campaigns are contests of competing visions," Biden said. "The country chooses one or the other. We accept the choice the country made. I’ve said many times you can’t love your country only when you win. You can’t love your neighbor only when you agree.
"Something I hope we can do no matter who you voted for is see each other not as adversaries but as fellow Americans, bring down the temperature," he added.
Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich asked Jean-Pierre about this change of tune from the president.
“This administration messaged to millions of Americans that they’re going to wake up day after the election if Trump won and have their rights stripped away, that democracy would crumble,” she said. “And the president said today, ‘we’re going to be OK.' So how do you square it?”
“I can square that. I’m going to square that in a way that hopefully makes sense because I’ve been answering this question multiple times,” Jean-Pierre responded.
“The American people made the decision," she continued. "There was an election two nights ago. There was. And it was a free and fair election and we respect the election process. We do. And Americans spoke. And so the job of the president is to make sure we respect that. The job of the president is to make sure that we have a peaceful transfer of power. That is what the American people deserve. And that’s what we’re going to-- it’s really, it’s not complicated. It’s truly, truly as simple as that."
Heinrich also wanted to know what her message is to those on the Left "who are fearful based on what the messaging was about [what's at stake]."
“Well, now you’re just twisting everything around and that’s really unfair," Jean-Pierre fired back. "No, it is. No, no, no, Jackie, it’s unfair because I’ve been standing here trying to be very respectful to what happened the last two nights, two nights ago. Being respectful. I’ve been standing here saying that we respect the decision that the American people made. I’ve been standing here and saying that the president’s going to put the American people first. I’ve been standing here talking about how the president’s going to make sure that they get what they deserve, which is a peaceful transfer of power.
“I do not appreciate having my words twisted," she continued. "That is-- I am being very clear, very, very, very clear about what the president wants to do and the vice president. We want to make sure that we deliver for the American people. They deserve, they deserve a peaceful transfer of power. And that’s what you’re going to see.”
WATCH: Fox’s @JacquiHeinrich challenges White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the Biden administration’s rhetoric about Donald Trump
— TV News Now (@TVNewsNow) November 7, 2024
“This administration messaged to millions of Americans that they’re going to wake up day after the election if Trump won and have… pic.twitter.com/VjQubt1CcG
She then quickly packed up and left the briefing room.