Jill Biden, the First Lady, expressed her dissatisfaction towards her husband and his aides for allowing a press conference in 2022 to continue for an extended period of time. She questioned why someone did not intervene earlier to bring it to a close.
According to a new book, Jill asked: “Where were you guys? ‘Where was the person who was going to end the press conference?”
Author Katie Rogers uncovers in her forthcoming book “American Woman” the account of Jill Biden’s confrontation with President Biden and his aides after the news conference on January 19, 2022, which marked his first year in office. The conference, which lasted nearly two hours, saw Biden addressing a range of topics. However, he occasionally stumbled over facts and responded vehemently to a reporter who referenced his comments drawing parallels between political opponents and segregationists, as reported by Fox News.
“She had watched the news conference, and the look on her face told everyone in the room — from the president on down — that they had some explaining to do,” Rogers wrote in the excerpt reported by Axios. “‘Why didn’t anyone stop that?’ she demanded.”
Rogers stated that the initial response of the first lady was so hostile that it even silenced her husband.
“Everyone stayed silent, looking at one another, and then at her, and back to one another. That included the most powerful man in the world. Her husband essentially played along, not offering an answer, even though aides had slipped him a card suggesting he end the press conference,” Rogers wrote.
Rogers added in her own account for The New York Times that officials “later apologized to her, according to an account of the episode shared by a person in the room.”
Jill Biden is portrayed in the book as a strong advocate for her husband, always looking out for his well-being and wanting to shield him from challenging situations. It is mentioned that she is aware of the toll the job takes on him, as he brings briefing books home every evening. These reports about the book come at a difficult time for the White House, as concerns about the president’s age have been raised. Recently, Biden gave a nationally televised speech and press conference in response to allegations of significant memory lapses during an interview for a special counsel report on his handling of classified documents.
Unfortunately, the press conference did not go well. This came after the release of Counsel Robert Hur’s report, which criticized Biden’s mishandling of classified information. The report, spanning 388 pages, caught the White House off guard and caused a stir within the administration. It documented Biden’s memory loss over the past decade, raising questions about invoking the 25th Amendment.
“Mr. Biden will likely present himself to the jury, as he did during his interview with our office, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” Hur wrote in explaining his rationale for refusing prosecution. “…It would be difficult to convince a jury they should convict him – by then a former president who will be at least well into his eighties – of a serious felony that requires a mental state of willfulness.”
“Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen,” the report said.