Biden to hold first public event of the week before flying to beach house

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White House dodges on Biden's lack of public appearances as tensions rise in Middle East

Fox News correspondent David Spunt asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre whether the American people will hear from President Biden directly this week amid heightening tensions in the Middle East.

President Biden is scheduled to hold his first public event of the week on Thursday before flying to his beach house in Delaware. 

Biden hasn’t been seen publicly since walking back to the White House from Marine One on Monday after returning with first lady Jill Biden from their residence in Wilmington, Delaware. 

None of the events on the president’s public schedule have been open to the press so far this week. 

On Thursday, Biden – during events closed to the press – is scheduled to call Hawaii Gov. Josh Green and Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen "to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the tragic Maui wildfires and those who lost their lives" and receive his presidential daily briefing. 

Biden later Thursday afternoon is to welcome the Texas Rangers to the White House to celebrate their 2023 World Series championship season during an event open to only press-credentialed media. 

BIDEN HUNKERS DOWN IN WHITE HOUSE WITH NO PUBLIC EVENTS ON SCHEDULE AGAIN

President Biden walks on the South Lawn of the White House after arriving on Marine One in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024.  (Michael Reynolds/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The president then is scheduled to depart the White House for Joint Base Andrews, from where he will then travel to Wilmington, Delaware. Biden's arrival in Wilmington is listed as open to the press, but the president and Jill Biden will then greet campaign staff there during an event listed on the public schedule as closed to the press. The couple will then go back to their home in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on Thursday evening. 

Biden sat down with CBS News for his first interview since exiting his race for re-election at the White House on Wednesday afternoon. The interview isn’t scheduled to air in full until Sunday. 

Aside from a promotional clip of the interview, the public hasn't seen Biden since Monday as he returned to the White House. The president told CBS News that he is "not confident at all" that there would be a peaceful transfer of power in January 2025 if former President Donald Trump loses the election, though Biden misspoke initially and said, "if Trump wins." 

President Biden returned from a weekend in Delaware to the White House on Monday, where he received a classified briefing on Iran-Israel military activities.  (Andrew Leyden/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

"He means what he says. We don't take him seriously. He means it, all the stuff about, 'If we lose, there'll be a bloodbath, it'll have to be a stolen election,’" Biden said. "Look what they're trying to do now in the local election districts where people count the votes," the president added, "or putting people in place in states that they're going to count the votes, right?"

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White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended the president, telling Fox News congressional correspondent Aishah Hasnie, "You'll see him tomorrow. There will be more opportunities. We have five months left here. There'll be plenty of opportunities, obviously, to see the president and, certainly, when we have events, public events to share and travel to share as we normally do, we will do just that." 

Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz during a campaign event at Temple University's Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Asked if the president has yet spoken to any of the U.S. service members injured in the attack by Iranian proxies on a base in Iraq over the weekend, Jean-Pierre said at the White House press briefing that she did not "have any conversations to speak of," but added, "obviously, we are wishing them a speedy recovery. They were injured. And so we have to give them some space and opportunity, to get better, to get that treatment that they need. As the president, he's also the commander-in-chief, as you know, and he takes that incredibly seriously." 

Of the seven injured U.S. personnel, Jean-Pierre said two have been returned to duty, two are recovering locally, and three have been evacuated for further treatment and remain in stable condition. 

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As Pennsylvania comes into focus as a key 2024 battleground, there's speculation about whether "Scranton Joe" will campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris in the state, especially after Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was passed up for Harris’ running mate. Harris announced earlier this week that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz would join her on the Democratic ticket.