(The Center Square) – White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre this week dismissed concerns regarding President Joe Biden’s possible re-election bid.
In an interview with CNN’s Don Lemon late Monday, Jean-Pierre responded to a question concerning Biden’s potential inability to run again in 2024.
“Does the president have the stamina — physically and mentally, do you think — to continue on, even after 2024?” Lemon asked.
“Don, you’re asking me this question? Oh my gosh, he’s the president of the United States,” Jean-Pierre replied. “That is not a question that we should be even asking.”
Her comments come after a New York Times article reporting Democrats’ hesitancy to endorse Biden, who is 79, for a 2024 run.
“That article that we’re talking about is hearsay,” Jean-Pierre said. “That’s not what we care about; we care about how are we going to deliver for the American people, how are we going to make their lives better.”
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., declined to endorse Biden’s potential run in 2024 during a different CNN interview. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “We’ll take a look at it.”
Biden’s approval ratings also show Democrats’ wavering support of the president. His approval rating sits at 41%, according to Reuters.
Specifically, voters say inflation is the most pressing issue, according to a poll by Quinnipiac University, with 64% disapproving of his handling of the economy.
When asked by a reporter on Monday about the issue of inflation, Jean-Pierre responded, “we know families are concerned about inflation and the stock market. That is something that the president is – is really aware of. And so, look, we face global challenges. We’ve talked about this. This is – we’re not the only country dealing with what we’re seeing at the moment as it relates to inflation.”
Defending her previous statements on the matter, Jean-Pierre has come out on her Twitter account saying that Biden does indeed plan to run in 2024.
“To be clear, as the president has said repeatedly, he plans to run in 2024,” she said.
