Believing he was no longer being recorded, Joe Biden snapped “what a stupid question” when he was asked why he is allowing Russian President Vladimir Putin to “make the first move” in Ukraine.
On the heels of his lengthy and scripted press conference, Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich asked about the tense situation between the United States, Ukraine, and Russia.
“Why are you waiting on Putin to make the first move,” asked Heinrich.
Thinking he was off mic, Biden retorted “What a stupid question.”
REPORTER: “Why are you waiting on Putin to make the first move, sir?”
BIDEN: “What a stupid question.” pic.twitter.com/rcKxNePAR3
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 20, 2022
Heinrich acknowledged the exchange on Twitter.
“Audio engineers captured POTUS responding to my question as the pool was ushered out,” wrote Heinrich, along with an upset emoji.
Audio engineers captured POTUS responding to my question as the pool was ushered out
pic.twitter.com/OrXnuC1NT8
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) January 20, 2022
Heinrich pointed out that Brett Bruen, the former Director of Global Engagement for President Barack Obama’s administration, disagreed with Biden’s assessment of the question.
“It isn’t a stupid question,” he wrote on Twitter. “It’s a really important one.”
“We continue to allow Putin to set the terms, timeline & trajectory of this crisis.” He explained, “It’s time we stop being so reactive & start creating some of our own conditions.”
President Obama’s Director of Global Engagement didn’t think it was a stupid question ….
https://t.co/lH6oBgrDWu
— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) January 20, 2022
Joe Biden has been repeatedly praised by the press and his supporters – the latest polls show roughly a third of the country remains in support of the unpopular president – for his polite interactions with the press.
Yamiche Alcindor, the PBS White House correspondent who was known for her confrontational nature during the Trump administration, praised Biden on this as recently as yesterday.
It remains unclear if the Biden’s uncouth remark made toward a Fox News employee will be met with the same apoplectic media response as the many unfriendly interactions between 45th President Donald Trump and the press.