WATCH: NY Post Reporter’s Question About Matt Taibbi Gets Shot Down at Briefing After Long Windup

Biden NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby shot down a lengthy question from New York Post White Houe Correspondent Steven Nelson about “Twitter Files” journo Matt Taibbi’s allegation the IRS visited his home while he was testifying before Congress.

According to a letter to the IRS from Rep. Jim Jordan, Taibbi told the committee that while he was testifying about the “Twitter Files” before Congress, “an IRS revenue officer appeared at Mr. Taibbi’s personal residence in New Jersey—leaving a note for Mr. Taibbi to call the IRS four days later. When Mr. Taibbi called the IRS, the IRS informed him that the reason for the visit was because his electronic 2018 and 2021 tax return filings had been rejected due to concerns of identity theft.”

At Wednesday’s White House briefing, Kirby joined White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre to field questions from reporters.

Nelson — who has taken a keen interest in the Twitter Files — took the opportunity to ask a lengthy question detailing Taibbi’s allegations and suggested this was an example of “abuse” of journalists and part of a “campaign to harass or intimidate,” but Kirby shot the question down in seconds:

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Steve.

STEVEN NELSON: Thank you, Karine. I have a press freedom follow-up on the President’s democracy remarks, and then I’d like to ask you about fentanyl in China.

On press freedom, the journalist Matt Taibbi this week said that the IRS visited his home on the same day as he testified to a house select subcommittee on the alleged weaponization of government. Taibbi worked on the Twitter Files project that revealed government cooperation with Twitter to censor disfavored speech.

President Biden said just now in the pro-democracy gathering that we should, quote, be “better protecting activists and journalists from cyber threats, harassment, [and] abuse.”

There of course been domestic issues with the U.S. treatment of journalist, as a colleague in our sixth row could attest, but I was wondering if you could respond to this Taibbi visit by the IRS, and say whether this is part of a campaign to harass or intimidate them related to his journalism.

MR. KIRBY: I’m afraid I’m going to have to refer you to the IRS on that.

Watch above via C-SPAN.