‘I Hope Not!’ Psaki Taken Aback When Reporter Asks if Biden Blames Her or Her Team for Low Approval Ratings
With a surprised smile, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters she hopes President Joe Biden doesn’t blame her for the decline in his approval ratings since taking office.
Ms. Psaki briefed reporters on Monday, and continued to make good on her efforts to call on reporters outside the first two rows. Among them was Today News Africa correspondent Simon Ateba, who was first to ask Psaki about rumors she was headed for a cable news gig weeks before news of her move to MSNBC broke.
This time, Mr. Ateba put Psaki on the spot about the president’s approval ratings:
MR. ATEBA: And then on his approval rating: When he came into office last year, he was around 60 percent and even more, and now he’s around 40 percent and sometimes less. Who does he blame now: Putin, Trump, you — the communication team?
MS. PSAKI: Oh, does he blame me? Oh, I don’t know. (Laughter.) I hope not.
Look, I think that the President recognizes that the country is still grappling with a number of challenges that impact people and their everyday lives, whether that is a continuing fight with a pandemic that has been going on for several years or the fact that costs are going up. Some of those are a result of the actions of President Putin — yes, as it relates to gas prices — but others are related to impacts of COVID-19 and impacts on the supply chain.
So, what our focus is and his focus continues to be: on solutions to address these challenges, and keeping our heads down and trying to continue to deliver for the American people.
President Biden’s approval experienced a surge following his State of the Union address, and perhaps buoyed by public sentiment about the war in Ukraine, but has stabilized in the low forties in the major polling averages — where it has been for about six months. As Mr. Ateba noted, the president enjoyed a 63 percent approval rating when he took office.
Watch above via The White House and Fox News.
