Posted on 08/09/2022 9:16:26 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
During Tuesday’s White House briefing, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre confirmed formerly anonymous claims that the White House had not been briefed about Monday’s FBI raid at Donald Trump’s home, Mar-a-Lago, and that they learned about the hours-long action the way everybody else did.
After her initial presentation, Jean-Pierre was asked (by a reporter who stumbled over the words “served a search warrant” several times, grasping for the politispeak phrase for “raid”):
On a different topic, the FBI served a search warrant on the former president’s residence in Florida. Was the President or anyone at the White House aware of that search warrant, or has anyone at the White House or the President been briefed in the aftermath of that search warrant being executed?
The answer:
No. The president was not briefed, did not — was not aware of it. No. No one at the White House was given a heads-up. No. That did not happen.
The reporter followed up by asking about the effect of the raid on the current political climate and the optics. Jean-Pierre read the canned answer from her binder:
The Justice Department conducts investigations independently, and we leave any law enforcement matters to them. It would not be appropriate for us to comment on any ongoing investigations. I can say that President Biden has been unequivocal since the campaign. He believes in the rule of law, in the independence of the Justice Department investigations, that those investigations should be free from political influence, and he has held that commitment as President.
She referred all press questions to the Department of Justice and to multiple questions about the optics by saying, “Look, we’re just not going to comment.”
In response to another reporter’s question, Jean-Pierre added more detail to her answer about how the White House learned of the raid.
Look, I’ll say this. You know, the President and the White House learned about this FBI search from public reports. We learned just like the American public did yesterday, and we did not have advance notice of this activity.
Another reporter asked if this action by the Justice Department was handled the way Biden promised the department would function when he nominated Merrick Garland on January 7, 2021, and, after being flustered for a moment, she said it was up to the DOJ to decide if they’d upheld Biden’s standard.
REPORTER: "Does the president believes that the Justice Department acted accordingly?"
KJP: *pause* "That's up for the Department of Justice to decide." pic.twitter.com/1GDgUBUtzF
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 9, 2022
She refused to answer any questions from Fox News’s Peter Doocy, even though he started out by asking if Biden considered Trump a political rival, then referenced a statement Biden made that he’d be fortunate to have Trump as his opponent again in 2024. Her curious answer:
All I can tell you, Peter, is that the President intends to run in 2024.
Finally, Doocy asked her a direct question relating to the raid.
Is this White House weaponizing the Justice Department and the FBI against political opponents?
Jean-Pierre attempted to repeat her canned answer:
The President has been very clear from before he was elected…
Blah, blah, blah. Doocy continued to attempt to to ask the yes or no question, and Jean-Pierre continued to not answer the question while claiming she’d answered the question but Doocy just didn’t like it.
"Is this administration weaponizing the Justice Department against political opponents?"
Karine Jean-Pierre REFUSES to answer EVERY question from Fox's Peter Doocy. pic.twitter.com/5itv6O2GWV
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) August 9, 2022
Jean-Pierre also declined to say whether or not Biden and Garland spoke on Tuesday.
The assertion that no one at the White House was given a heads-up on a raid in which a search warrant had been obtained on Friday, August 5, to be executed on the residence of a former president, is simply not credible. Period, full stop.
>> Probably not a good idea for the Democrats to go crooked and creepy at this point.
Agreed. See my #30 comment on the following thread
FBI searched Melania’s wardrobe, spent hours in Trump’s private office during Mar-a-Lago raid
https://freerepublic.com/focus/news/4084425/posts?page=30#30
It is Not false that The White House didn’t know. Houses, even great big ones, even great big white ones, are not human and don’t know anything. Some say the walls have ears, but that claim has yet to be proven.
I’m really beginning to dislike this woman.
Bahahahahaha…little gay black orphan Annie should start standup comedy…she would be much more effective…
Yep. That’s how THEY see it.
“It’s not a lie!…”.
Biden’s handlers planned this; it wouldn’t surprise me at all that they didn’t inform Plugs personally.
He’s so ‘gone’ that who knows if he’d blurt it out two weeks ago at a press conference..
So yeah, in their alleged minds, they weren’t lying.. they told neither Plugs or the actual house.
Biden is ignorant of a lot,but “Plausibe Deniability’isn’t one of them.
dumber than a rock - and seems to think others are too
Why would WH be briefed on something they ordered?
Question should have been: “Did FBI do this ‘cause Biden told Garland on xx/yy/22 to ‘get more aggressive on Trump’”?
To attack properly you should imply something and let THEM dig their way out of the hole you threw them into.
Just like Obama claimed for 8 years. If hadn’t been for the nightly news, he would never have a had any clue what was going on in the world.
If Biden and the WH didn’t know and approve the raid as they claim then Biden is admitting he has no control over his government. Something as significant as raiding the home of a former president and potential political opponent in 2024 would, in a sane administration, need presidential approval. If this is the case, that Biden didn’t know, then he should fire both Wray and Garland. Not doing so is in my opinion evidence that Biden and the WH knew and approved the raid. And if they did know and approve the raid then, again, that is evidence that this administration and Biden have weaponized the DOJ and FBI against his political opponents — which any intelligent and sane person would already know.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.