A North Carolina radio show has come out to say that the White House lied in its claims that the show edited a clip of its phone interview with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre in which she got agitated and hung up the phone.
Local Radio Station Accuses White House Of Lying About KJP Interview After Dramatic Hang-Up https://t.co/Z55cSJmEb8
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 28, 2024
After the incident which happened on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the White House told the Daily Beast that Charlotte’s WBT News edited a sound effect into the interview to stir up drama and make it look like Jean-Pierre hung up the phone.
According to the spokesperson, Andrew Bates, the radio station “chose not to air the full interview and instead artificially attached a sound effect that our phones do not make when calls end.”
The White House also claimed that the Jean-Pierre abruptly left the show so she could move on to another interview in her “multiple back-to-back interviews.”
However, host Mark Garrison, who conducted the interview, disputed the White House’s claim.
Speaking to the Daily Caller, Garrison said, “The White House assertion that we added a sound effect is nonsense. When she hung up, the phone noise was purely from their end.”
The radio station reportedly provided the Daily Caller with raw footage of the interview.
The interview at the center of the controversy saw Garrison quiz Jean-Pierre about President Joe Biden’s mental fitness for office and the rising economic costs under the Biden administration.
“When I told a number of people that I was talking to you today, it was interesting, though, they all said, ‘would you please just ask her, does the president have dementia?’ So before I move on from that, does he?” Garrison asked.
Jean-Pierre shot back at Garrison, saying, “That Mark, Mark, I can’t even believe you’re asking me this question. That is a credibly offensive question to ask.”
When Garrison tried to explain that he was only transmitting questions that Americans are curious about, the press secretary said, “Wait. Oh let me — no, no, no, no, no. You — Mark, you, you, you, you, you’re taking us down this rabbit hole. Let me, let me, let me be very clear about this.”
She then went on to defend the president’s cognitive health, saying, “This is a president — if you watch him every day, if you really pay attention to his record and what he has done, you will see exactly how focused he’s been on the American people, how historic his actions have been. And so I’m not even going to truly, truly, really, you know, take, take the premise of your question. I think it is incredibly insulting. And, and so we can, you know, we can move on to the next question.”
Garrison later moved on to the rising costs of everyday items like groceries and gas, asking how Biden plans to win votes at a time when making ends meet is getting incredibly difficult for the average American.
In response, Jean-Pierre brought out Biden’s upbringing in a middle class family, claiming that he understands what it means for a family to struggle to make ends meet.
“Now you’re asking me about gas prices. The president took action on gas prices,” she continued. “Let’s not forget Russia’s invasion on Ukraine skyrocketed prices of gas. And because the president took action, we see we are in a different place than we were a year ago in gas prices. Eggs, milk, seafood products, all the important groceries, those costs have gone down because of what this president has been able to do. And, and with that, thank you so much, Mark. Have an amazing, amazing day.”
