Karine Jean Pierre: ‘Global headwinds’ blamed for election result in first White House briefing since Nov 5
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the election result which saw Democrats decimated was partly the result of “global headwinds” that are going against all incumbent leaders around the world. “Despite all of the accomplishments that we were able to get done, there were global headwinds because of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Jean-Pierre said.
“And it had a political toll on many incumbents. If you look at what happened in 2024 globally. And that’s part of what you saw,” she added.
Karine who faced many a heated press conference when Joe Biden was still in the race over Biden’s health was asked whether Biden felt any responsibility for Harris’ loss to Donald Trump or whether he regrets opting out of the race.
Biden “believes he made the right decision when he decided to step aside,” Karine said without answering to the question of whether Biden felt any responsibility towards Harris’ loss.
“There’s going to be a lot of punditry, a lot of election experts who are going to have their opinions, who are going to have their thoughts, but the president is very, very proud of what he’s been able to accomplish and incredibly impressed with what the vice president was able to do,” Jean-Pierre said.
Before the White House briefing, Joe Biden made his first address in which he said he accepts President-elect Donald Trump’s victory and vowed to honor the Constitution with a peaceful transfer of power, even as he acknowledged the pain felt by his supporters.
“I know for some people, it’s a time for victory, to state the obvious. For others, it’s a time of loss, campaigns or contests of competing visions,” he said from the Rose Garden at the White House. “The country chooses one or the other. We accept the choice the country made.
“I’ve said many times you can’t love your country only when you win,” he added. “Yesterday, I spoke with President-elect Trump to congratulate him on his victory, and I assured him that I will direct my entire administration to work with his team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition,” Biden said.
