Ex-CIA Station chief on Biden: 'Message discipline matters'
Fox News contributor and former CIA station chief in Moscow Dan Hoffman spoke to ‘Your World’ about the potential ramifications of Biden's controversial comments about Putin.
President Biden once again contradicted messaging from the White House, this time regarding whether or not he tuned into the Senate confirmation hearing of his Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.
During Monday's press conference, CBS News correspondent Ed O'Keefe asked the president if he had a chance to watch much of Jackson's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week.
Biden replied, "I didn't get a chance to see any of it, unfortunately."
President Joe Biden introduces his budget request for fiscal year 2023 at the White House on March 28, 2022. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
That was what the White House told reporters during last Tuesday's press briefing, where Deputy Press Secretary Chris Meagher claimed Biden had seen "portions" of the hearing.
"The President watched portions of Judge Jackson’s hearing yesterday and today and is proud of the way she is showcasing her extraordinary qualifications, her experience, and her even-handedness. Her dedication to following the facts, the law, and our Constitution as an independent judge is clear," Meagher said at the time. "He was also moved by the grace and dignity she has shown, the deference to senators, and the level of detail she is offering, reinforcing the value of her experience, her intellect, and the strength of her character."
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Meagher mentioned multiple moments from the hearing that Biden was "particularly struck" by, such as when Jackson highlighted her own family members in law enforcement during an exchange with Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.
"He was also struck by how she swiftly dismantled conspiracy theories put forward in bad faith. They’ve been debunked by numerous fact checks, experts, and the record itself," Meagher said.
Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson speaks during her confirmation hearing, Monday, March 21, 2022, on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
A White House official told Fox News, "He watched clips and read coverage, but not the hearing in full." But when asked if Biden misspoke after he said he didn't watch "any" of the hearing, the White House replied, "No."
Biden and his administration appear to not be reading off the same page, particularly when it comes to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis.
The White House repeatedly had to walk back comments the president made overseas. On Thursday, he suggested that the U.S. would retaliate "in kind" if Russia launched a chemical attack on Ukraine. The White House issued a statement that the U.S. "has no intention of using chemical weapons, period, under any circumstances."
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On Friday, while speaking to American troops stationed in Poland, Biden suggested they would be sent to Ukraine as he was describing what they would witness on the ground. The White House issued a statement saying, "The president has been clear we are not sending U.S. troops to Ukraine and there is no change in that position."
President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, Poland, March 26, 2022. (Slawomir Kaminski/Agencja Wyborcza.pl via Reuters)
Then on Saturday, during a speech in Warsaw, Biden made international headlines when he declared that Russian President Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power," sounding the alarm among critics that he meant he supported a regime change or for Putin to be taken out.
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The White House quickly released a statement saying, "The president’s point was that Putin cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region. He was not discussing Putin’s power in Russia, or regime change."
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