Psaki Confronted About Biden Urging Senators to ‘Stand Up’ at Trump Trial, Won’t Say if President Wants Them to Convict

White House press secretary Jen Psaki denied on Friday that President Joe Biden intended to advocate for his predecessor’s impeachment when he called on senators to “stand up.”

“The president was in the Senate for 36 years,” Psaki said in response to a question from CBS News’ Weijia Jiang asking her to clarify what Biden meant. She then pivoted with a reference to new Valentine’s Day decorations on the White House lawn, where Biden was when he made the statement. “We talked with him about this this morning — just for everyone’s context, he was out having his morning coffee, looking at the new hearts on the front lawn.”

Jiang persisted, asking, “But how can they stand up in the president’s eyes?”

Psaki replied, “They can take the role they have — they can take their responsibility seriously. They’re all jurors there. They — [Biden] said a number of times that, of course the Senate will make the decision, the jurors in the Senate will make the decision.

“He has been very clear,” she added. “And he would’ve been this morning, too, but that wasn’t a part of the conversation.”

Watch above via C-SPAN.