US president Biden forgets Rep. Walorski died, gives shoutout at summit; ‘Where’s Jackie?’
In an awkward moment, Biden appeared to scan the room searching for the deceased Rep and then suggested that she must have missed the event.
US President Joe Biden on Wednesday shocked the White House gathering at an anti-hunger event after he appeared to give a shoutout to an Indiana congresswoman, who died earlier this year, asking her to make her presence felt. At the White House conference on hunger, nutrition and health that was held after nearly 5 decades, President Biden called out the name of Jackie Walorski, a Republican member of the House who died in a car crash, asking: “Where’s Jackie?”
Biden had participated in the tributes dedicated to the deceased Congresswoman by lowering the American flag at half-mast. Both the President and the First Lady of the US also later released a statement expressing their condolences for Walorski’s death in early August. “Jill and I are shocked and saddened by the death of Congresswoman Jackie Walorski of Indiana along with two members of her staff in a car accident today in Indiana,” read Biden’s statement that he published on Aug 3.
“We may have represented different parties and disagreed on many issues, but she was respected by members of both parties for her work on the House Ways and Means Committee on which she served. She also served as co-chair of the House Hunger Caucus, and my team and I appreciated her partnership as we plan for a historic White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health this fall,” his statement continued.
In an awkward moment on Wednesday, though, Biden appeared to scan the room searching for the late Rep and then suggested that she must have missed the event.
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“I want to thank all of you here including bipartisan elected officials like representatives, governors … (Indiana) Senator (Mike) Braun, (New Jersey) Senator (Cory) Booker, Representative Jackie (Walorski). Jackie are you here? Where is Jackie. I think she must not be here … to help make this a reality,” Biden said at the event.
White House press secretary struggles to justify Biden’s gaffe
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre later at a briefing struggled to respond or justify Biden’s what is being deemed by the GOP, an embarrassing error. “At a hunger event today, the president appeared to look around the room for an audience member, a member of Congress who passed away last month. He seemed to indicate she might be in the room?” a reporter asked Biden’s press secretary. “So. So. So the president was, as you all know, you guys were watching today’s event, a very important event on food insecurity,” Jean-Pierre fumbled. She continued, president [Biden] was naming the congressional champions on this issue and was acknowledging the late Representative’s incredible work.
“He had. He had already planned to welcome the congresswoman’s family to the White House on Friday. There will be a bill signing in her honour this coming Friday. So, of course, she was on his mind. She was of top of mind for the president,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre noted.
A reporter objected to the White House press secretary’s explanation, counter questioning: “I’m trying to get my head around the response.” She further asked, that if the late congresswoman was at top of Biden’s mind and her family was expected to be here, and that’s what he was thinking about, but “why was he looking for her?” Jean-Pierre, in her response, reiterated that people can understand by themselves.
“I think the American people out there who, you know, watch the briefing from time to time, maybe at this moment will understand when someone is at top of mind,” she stressed. “Karine, I have John Lennon, top of mind just about every day, but I’m not looking around for him anywhere?” another reporter stated. White House Press Secretary dismissed the question, saying: “When you sign a bill for John Lennon, Lennon as a president, then we can have this conversation. Okay, go ahead.” 79-year-old US president is often deemed as the “gaffe machine” and the Republicans labelled his act as “alarming.”
