Fox’s Peter Doocy Asks Karine Jean-Pierre If Debate Challenge Was a Distraction From ‘Bad Polling’

Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Wednesday if President Joe Biden’s debate challenge to former President Donald Trump that morning was meant to serve as a distraction from “bad polling.”

Jean-Pierre immediately began shooting down Doocy’s line of questioning during a White House press conference as he dove into the campaign and two planned debates that were quickly agreed to by Biden and Trump after the president’s challenge.

“I know you don’t want to talk about campaign stuff, so I would just look for your —” Doocy began before Jean-Pierre jumped in.

“I really don’t,” she said.

Doocy continued talking as Jean-Pierre reminded him she cannot comment on the campaign due to her position in the administration.

“It’s not even that I don’t want to. I can’t. I can’t,” she said.

“Then how about your insight as the most prominent political communicator in the world, the White House press secretary,” Doocy said.

“In the world?” an amused Jean-Pierre asked.

“Does a person generally want to debate when they are winning or when they are losing?” Doocy asked, earning a laugh from the press secretary.

“I am not going to do political punditry from here, my friend, I’m just not,” she said.

Doocy barreled forward and asked if “bad polling” was behind the public challenge to debate.

“So should we see this sudden offer from the president to debate as a signal that you guys realized you need to change the subject after some really bad polling?” he said.

“We had a back and forth on polling yesterday, and it just goes back to the core of what I said to you, which is look, this is a president had a pretty successful legislative tenure in the first three and half years and has delivered on many things that are popular to the American people,” Jean-Pierre said.

At a Tuesday press conference, Doocy asked Jean-Pierre why Americans are “down” on Biden at the moment, citing a New York Times/Siena College poll showing Trump leading the president in support in five of six swing states. Jean-Pierre acknowledged the negative impacts of inflation, a point she echoed on Wednesday, saying the administration “need to do more to lower costs for Americans.”

“As it relates to the debate,” she added, “you’ve got to talk to the campaign about it. That is a question for the campaign, and I am sure they are eager to answer your questions, Peter.”

Watch above via Fox News.