Amid White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre’s worst press briefing yet as she faced questions Wednesday about the baby formula shortage, the economy, inflation, and presidential leadership, Bloomberg’s Justin Sink came from the left on abortion by twice wanting to know why Biden hasn’t made abortion more of a focus in his administration following the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion striking down Roe v. Wade.
Sink began by noting the leak happened a month ago and Biden subsequently “talked about how that really reframed the debate and the stakes for the midterm elections, but since then, the President hasn’t publicly met with any abortion rights groups, he hasn’t spoken about it in weeks, given a speech on it.”
Sink added that while Vice President Harris has mentioned abortion and that it’s come up at briefings, “there’s been no sort of presidential action on it.”
After all that, he asked his question about when it’ll happen:
So I’m wondering, does that signal that the President’s understanding of the politics of this issue have changed in any way? Or is there an event with the President that is going to happen before the summer of the Americas or before he travels to Europe? I mean, it just seems to have fallen completely off his schedule.
Jean-Pierre replied that she didn’t “have anything to preview on his schedule, but the President is clear on this....that a woman has the right to make their own decisions when it comes to their own healthcare and their own health and their own reproductive rights.”
In other words, it’s that Biden supports abortion on-demand, up to the moment of birth.
“Our teams here are in constant communication and having regular meetings with groups out there who are focused on making sure that that continues,” Jean-Pierre continued.
Sink countered soon after with another plea from the left, wondering why Biden “hasn’t...laid the stakes out as this should be something in front of voters’ minds.”
Jean-Pierre had little more to add, pointing out that “it was a draft” that was leaked and both he and administration officials spoke out that week, “[s]o it’s not like we didn’t take this seriously and we don’t continue to take this seriously.”
“So this is an important issue for the President. We know that. We know that for the American people. I just don’t have anything to share with you on his schedule,” she concluded.
To see the relevant transcript form June 1's briefing, click “expand.”
White House press briefing
June 1, 2022
4:47 p.m. EasternJUSTIN SINK: About a month ago, the Supreme Court decision or draft decision leaked on abortion rights. A lot of folks, including the President at that time, talked about how that really reframed the debate and the stakes for the midterm elections. But since then, the President hasn’t publicly met with any abortion rights groups, he hasn’t spoken about it in weeks, given a speech on it. I know that you and the Vice President have kind of occasionally mentioned it from the podium, but there’s been no sort of Presidential action on it. So I’m wondering, does that signal that the President’s understanding of the politics of this issue have changed in any way? Or is there an event with the President that is going to happen before the summer of the Americas or before he travels to Europe? I mean, it just seems to have fallen completely off his schedule.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE: Well, I mean, I don’t have anything to preview on his schedule, but the President is clear on this. He believes the right, that a woman has the right to make their own decisions when it comes to their own healthcare and their own health and their own reproductive rights. I mean, that’s something that he has said. That is something that he believes. Our teams here are in constant communication and having regular meetings with groups out there who are focused on making sure that that continues, the rights of women to choose continues. But I don’t have anything to lay out.
SINK: Do you know why the President just hasn’t made this… I mean, he kind of laid the stakes out as this should be something in front of voters’ minds.
JEAN-PIERRE: Well, I mean, if we step back for a second, it was a draft. It was a SCOTUS draft. We spoke to it. We were very forceful about it. The President put out a statement. You’ve heard from the vice President, you’ve heard from other members of our team. So it’s not like we didn’t take this seriously and we don’t continue to take this seriously. So this is an important issue for the President. We know that. We know that for the American people. I just don’t have anything to share with you on his schedule.
