White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre opened Monday’s press conference by discussing the reports of antisemitic threats at Cornell University.
And a Fox News reporter pushed Jean-Pierre about her refusal to use the word “extremism.”
Jean-Pierre began, “Since the October 7th Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel, we have seen an alarming rise in reported antisemitic incidents at schools and on college campuses. There is no place for hate in America, and we condemn any antisemitic threat or incident.”
However, Fox News reporter Peter Doocy demanded more. He wanted to hear Jean-Pierre use the word “extremist.”
Doocy asked, “Does President Biden think the anti-Israel protesters in this country are extremists?”
Jean-Pierre repeated her sound bite, and pivoted to talking about other forms of extremism.
“We’ve been very clear about this: When it comes to antisemitism, there is no place. We have to make sure that we speak against it very loud and be — and be very clear about that,” Jean-Pierre said. “Remember, what the President decided — when the President decided to run for president is what he saw in Charlottesville in 2017, when we — he saw neo-Nazis marching down the streets of Charlottesville with vile, antisemitic — just hatred.”
Biden has said that he decided to run for president after seeing the 2017 protests in Charlottesville, Virginia. Some of the protestors were chanting, “Jews will not replace us.”
Doocy, unsatisfied, repeated his question about Jean-Pierre’s use of the word “extremist.”
“We hear you guys, though, talk about ”extremists’ all the time,” Doocy said. “It is usually about ‘MAGA extremists.’ So, what about these protesters who are making Jewish students feel unsafe on college campuses? Are they extremists?”
Jean-Pierre pivoted again.
“Let me be very clear: This is a president that has continued to have that fight in his office, in this administration. You know, when he repealed Trump’s Muslim ban, on his very — in first — first day in office, that is something that this president did. He also established an inter-policy committee to counter Islamophobia,” Jean-Pierre said. There’s no place for hate in America. And we condemn any antisemitic threat or incident in the strongest terms.”
Watch the video here —
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