As the Biden administration continues to face scrutiny for many crises, there is one issue in particular that has the attention of many Americans – the recent mysterious presence of a spy balloon hovering over select cities in the United States. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tried to dismiss questions about a new report concerning the balloon, but Fox News reporter Peter Doocy refused to let the matter go, and his persistence paid off in a tense exchange with Jean-Pierre.
In response to a question about President Joe Biden’s apparently false claim that American officials had prevented the Chinese spy balloon from obtaining sensitive information, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre refused to answer.
According to the Daily Wire, this week a number of outlets reported that – despite the Biden administration’s claims to the contrary – the Chinese balloon was able to collect data and “was able to transmit information back to Beijing in real time.”
It was also of concern that they hadn’t yet determined whether or not the technology onboard the balloon would have enabled the data to be deleted immediately after transmission — which could mean that China could have retrieved and deleted data immediately without the United States even learning about it.
However, in February, Biden said, “We were able to protect sensitive sites against collection.”
Peter Doocy from Fox News asked the press secretary why Biden would have made such a claim if he knew it wasn’t true.
Rather than addressing the question, Jean-Pierre suggested the reporting may have been in error rather than President Biden.
But it didn’t stop there. Doocy continued to press Jean-Pierre on the subject.
The American people deserve to know the truth about the presence of spy balloons over our cities. The lack of transparency and stonewalling by the Biden administration is concerning, and it is the duty of the press to hold them accountable. Peter Doocy’s refusal to let Karine Jean-Pierre off the hook on this matter shows the importance of a free and independent press in a democracy. It is imperative that the Biden administration provides clear answers on these spying techniques being used against our country, or else the American people will be left with more questions than answers.
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