"The president intends to go."
That's what White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked on July 26 if there was any update on President Joe Biden's supposed plans to visit East Palestine, Ohio, following the train derailment and toxic spill that had taken place more than five months earlier on February 3.
"He will go to East Palestine."
Those were Jean-Pierre's words when asked about a presidential visit to the affected community on May 3.
"The president keeps to his word."
So insisted Jean-Pierre when Biden's absence from East Palestine was noted on April 10, despite his pledge to visit residents.
"Plans are underway."
That was Jean-Pierre's response when questions about the promised presidential trip to East Palestine were raised on March 22.
"He's been to Ohio many times before."
This flimsy Kamala Harris-level answer was Jean-Pierre's initial excuse when asked why Biden hadn't visited on the March 3rd one-month anniversary of the derailment.
It's now been seven months since the toxic train derailment, and Biden has still not visited East Palestine all the while Karine Jean-Pierre has trotted out one flimsy excuse after another and false claim after false claim to try explaining away why the president "for all Americans" didn't see fit to visit the community which lies less than 300 miles from the White House.
Well, Biden himself had to answer the question this weekend while taking questions during his tour of damage from Hurricane Idalia in Florida — and his answer was even less believable than Jean-Pierre's briefing room spin.
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"I haven’t had the occasion to go to East Palestine," Biden said to the press when asked why he hadn't visited East Palestine in the seven months since the disaster. "There’s a lot going on here, and I just haven’t been able to break," the president claimed.
BIDEN: “I haven’t had the occasion to go to East Palestine. There’s a lot going on.” pic.twitter.com/YfQAt7DoYK
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 3, 2023
Really? He hasn't "been able to break" in the last seven months? This from the president who has spent almost 40 percent of his time as president on retreat in Delaware? Who spent multiple weekends this summer relaxing in his swim trunks on the beach? The same one who just enjoyed more than a week of vacation in Tahoe where he was bragging about having 90 minutes to do pilates and spin classes with some sort of smoothie in hand?
Yes, that vacation-loving octogenarian just hasn't had a day in the past seven months to fly to Ohio and visit the people of East Palestine to understand their struggles and the after-effects of the derailment that spurred concerns about toxic air and water and potentially lasting health consequences.
President Biden has displayed over and over that his main priority is his (and his family's) own comfort and happiness, demonstrated by avoiding the difficult parts of being a leader and turning a blind eye to Americans' struggles and making lame excuses for why he can't be bothered to show leadership when it matters most.
While this revelation, that Biden's reason for not visiting East Palestine is due to his supposed inability to take a break, does not at least have any tinge of unlawful activity, it's still a disqualifying admission that confirms his lack of interest in truly being a leader.
It's sadly unsurprising that the president who repeatedly checked his watch while attending the dignified transfer of U.S. service members killed during his chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan would also break his promise to visit Americans citizens just a few hundred miles from Washington, but it again shows his serious disregard for the people for whom he claims to fight.
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