Karine Jean-Pierre and Peter Doocy just had what could be their last exchange in the White House briefing room.
The White House press secretary and Fox News correspondent — who had many viral spars in the briefing room — acknowledged at Monday’s briefing that it could be the last interaction they have in that setting as the Trump administration is set to take over in one week.
“Hi,” Biden’s press secretary said trepidatiously as she called on Doocy.
“Thank you, Karine. If I don’t see you again in the briefing, thank you,” Doocy said. “You could have stopped taking the hard questions years ago, and you didn’t, so we appreciate that.”
“Over two years, my friend. This is, let’s say, one last dance, right? I don’t know how I’m going to fill my dance card now. How will I fill that void without you?” Jean-Pierre asked, laughing.
“You tell me,” Doocy replied.
“Start some rumors in here, I guess,” Jean-Pierre said, as some of the reporters began reacting to their playful banter.
“He’s getting red, too. Look at him,” one pointed out.
“So, a week from now, it’s all over,” Doocy said, shifting to his questioning. “Between next Monday and 2028, who’s the leader of the Democratic Party?”
“Oh my goodness. Wow. Honestly, that is for people much smarter than I to make that assessment, that decision. Obviously, voters will decide. That is not something for me to decide,” Jean-Pierre replied. “I could say right now, in this moment, in this room … you have the president, President Joe Biden, who is obviously the president and the leader of the Democratic Party.”
“I cannot predict the future, so that is not something that I’m going to do from here,” she added.
“So, no leader of the party?” Doocy followed up.
“That’s not what I said,” Jean-Pierre pushed back.
“Well, it’s not President Biden, and it’s not Vice President Harris, and it’s not the chair of the DNC. So, it’s nobody,” Doocy said as Jean-Pierre began retorting.
“Oh my gosh, I’m regretting this right now. I’m regretting all of this,” she said. “That’s not what I said.”
