‘That’s in No Way a Fair Statement’: Jen Psaki Bristles at Fox News Reporter Who Asks if Biden ‘Waiting for People to Die’ to Act

Things got tense when Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich asked White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki if President Joe Biden is “waiting for people to die” before enacting sanctions on Russia.

The president gave a speech Friday afternoon updating Americans on the dire situation in Ukraine, saying he believes Vladimir Putin has already made the decision to invade Ukraine.

At a White House press briefing hours before Biden’s speech, Heinrich asked why not impose sanctions now, instead of after Russia invades, then drew Ms. Psaki’s ire by pressing the point in stark terms:

MS. HEINRICH: And on Ukraine, the sanctions, we’ve learned, don’t include SWIFT, they don’t target energy, so the impacts to other countries are mitigated. You guys have attributed this cyberattack to Russia, and you’re warning that the prospect of war is — or peace, rather, is pretty dim. So, at what point do you break away from the strategy and say it’s not working and do something else — impose some of these sanctions now?

MS. PSAKI: Well, I think as we’ve talked about a little bit in here, our collective view from our national security team is that sanctions are meant to be a deterrent. They are not — if you put all of the sanctions in place now, what is stopping them from invading?

MS. HEINRICH: But are they working?

MS. PSAKI: Well, again, Jacqui, I think that’s our assessment from the national security team and — you know, that we will continue to implement that strategy.

MS. HEINRICH: So you’re waiting for people to die before implementing them in that case?

MS. PSAKI: I think, Jacqui, that’s in no way a fair statement — or accusation, I guess, if that’s what that is.

What we have done and what the President has done is unite hundr- — countries around the world on a strong package that will be crippling to the Russian economy. And we have done that in a way where we have stood up for the territorial integrity of — of Ukraine, and stood with our NATO partners and Allies.

It has always been up to President Putin and Russia to determine which path they were going to take. That has not changed.

But that leadership on the world stage is what has led to a united front and united opposition to these actions.
And I would also note that regardless of what decision President Putin decides to make, one of his intended objectives, I think, as we’ve seen out there, is to divide NATO — the opposite has happened; to divide, maybe, the United States and divide leadership in the United States — the opposite has happened.

So, if that was his objective, he’s already not achieving that.

Watch above via C-Span.

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