‘I Don’t Even Understand’: Jake Tapper Leads CNN Panel In Laughing At Biden’s ‘I Plan on Running’ Non-Announcement

President Joe Biden raised some eyebrows on Monday with a seemingly contradictory statement on his plan to run for reelection in 2024. Biden was pressed on the topic and very clearly stated he plans to run, but that he wasn’t announcing that yet.

“Earlier today, Al Roker was at the Easter Egg Roll and he asked President Biden about his reelection plans. Take a listen,” began CNN anchor Jake Tapper’s coverage of the moment.

“Help a brother out, make some news for me,” Roker says in the clip.

“Oh, no. Well, I plan on running, Al. But we’re not prepared to announce it yet,” Biden replied with a grin.

“I mean, what is that?” replied Tapper to the clip as he and his panel laughed. “I plan on running, but we’re not going to announce it yet. So he’s running?”

“Yeah, he’s running,” replied Michael LaRosa – a former Biden official.

“So. But what? So what are we waiting for? I don’t even understand. What? What is? He’s not going to announce it. He just announced it,” added a bewildered Tapper.

“Sure. I don’t know what everybody’s waiting for. I don’t know what everybody’s talking about. I mean, I don’t think he has to announce until January. If you ask me. I would let the Republicans and the media know. You know, events just focus on the debates every month coming up and every Republican trying to out-MAGA each other until January. Trump’s December court date. There’s lots of things that he can just focus on. And he’s proven to be a successful first-term president by just focusing on legislative politics, not campaign politics,” concluded LaRosa.

“But why the kabuki?” Tapper challenged.

“I think when he says, ‘I am not ready to announce it,’ they’re talking about a formal announcement, be it an email or a video or a rally where he declares this and that triggers certain, you know, fundraising rules and such. And it seems to me from the people I talked to that the White House or the president’s advisors don’t see a lot of urgency in doing that,” argued Catherine Lucey, the Wall Street Journal’s White House correspondent, parsing out the difference between announcing plans to run versus actually making the announcement.

Watch the full clip via CNN.

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