Reporter Who Got Dragged for Biden Ice Cream Tweet Actually Wrote Glowing Article About President’s Trip

Tommy ChristopherJan 26th, 2022, 12:59 pm
 
US President Joe Biden carries an ice cream cone as he leaves Jeni's Ice Cream in Washington, DC, on January 25, 2022. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Associated Press White House correspondent Josh Boak racked up many scoops of criticism when he tweeted about President Joe Biden’s ice cream run, but he actually wrote a very positive article about the trip.

Boak wasn’t the only White House reporter to tweet about the president’s visit to Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams Tuesday, as the jaunt by the well-known frozen treat aficionado captured the imaginations of many.

Some imaginations were more active than others.

But it was Boak who achieved the ratio by tweeting “It’s 34 degrees in DC and President Biden is buying Jeni’s Ice Cream.”

A small sampling of the reactions to Boak:

Some of Jen Psaki’s press staff even got in on the act. White House Assistant Press Secretary Vedant Patel wrote “And the point being?” with some ice cream emojis.

White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates wrote “This tweet is both accurate and heartwarming.”

Bates, known for his sharp tongue, may have taken it easy on Boak because he knew what Boak would show to his detractors after nearly a full day of getting pummeled on Twitter: The article Boak wrote about the shopping trip.

“Lots of folks are focused on my tweet about President Biden buying ice cream. It was just a tweet sent out as part of the pool–the president likes ice cream,” Boak wrote Wednesday morning, and added “What you should be reading is the actual AP article:”

The article — entitled “To highlight economic growth, Biden goes shopping for gifts” — is a glowing cross between a warm narration of Biden’s shopping trip and a Biden administration fact sheet, which Boak notes were distributed along the way:

The excursion occurred as the administration is trying to spotlight the healthier parts of the economy, at a time when many Americans are fretting over inflation at a nearly 40-year high. Higher prices have overshadowed the clear gains under Biden’s watch as the unemployment rate has improved sharply to 3.9% and the economy is poised for the strongest growth since 1984.

The White House issued a fact sheet as Biden shopped that said the administration had provided $400 billion in aid to more than 6 million small businesses. Biden opened his presidency by securing a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, which helped to keep cash-strapped companies in business and boosted consumer demand. But strong demand and troubled supply chains led to higher prices, creating what is now a political challenge for a president who has seen his approval slip as the country has struggled to recover from the pandemic.

And before the tweet that got him ratioed, Boak tweeted a photo of Biden’s visit to Honey Made, where Boak notes he bought “a hoodie for his grandson and a necklace for his wife, Jill as well as a mug with a picture of Vice President Kamala Harris on it.”

Alas, at 33 retweets and counting, Boak’s positive report has not gained the reach of his tweet about ice cream.

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