National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was perplexed after a reporter mentioned to him that most Americans believe President Joe Biden is corrupt and outright asked if the president is indeed corrupt.
Steve Nelson, a reporter for the New York Post, left Kirby speechless during a press conference held Wednesday at the White House.
The spokesman was answering questions related to foreign policy when Nelson took the floor and told him about the House Oversight Committee's ongoing investigation into alleged international business dealings by the president's family.
The journalist pointed out that, as a result of the developments that have emerged in the case, it was possible to obtain a document from the FBI that involves Biden and that could prove that he was part of an illegal influence-peddling scheme.
Nelson told him that because of all of the above, many Americans believe that the president is corrupt and that, in fact, a recent poll concluded that 53% of citizens believe that quote Joe Biden was involved with his son in the scheme.
"What do you say to the majority of Americans who believe that the president is himself corrupt?" he asked.
Kirby was so taken aback by the question that he initially limited his response to a simple "wow," but after a pause, he added that he would not say anything about those claims.
The journalist insisted and highlighted that there is "evidence that the president interacted with his relative’s associates from China, Mexico, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine." However, Kirby said only that the president has already discussed the issue and that if he wants to know more about the whistleblowers and the document, he would have to go to the FBI.
“53% of the public — including a fourth of Democrats — believe ‘Joe Biden was involved with his son in an illegal influence peddling scheme’. What do you say to the majority of Americans who believe that the President himself is corrupt?”
KIRBY: “Wow…”
KJP: “Jesus..” pic.twitter.com/SCVICnGWiA
— ALX 🇺🇸 (@alx) May 31, 2023
Almost immediately afterward, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre interrupted, thanking Kirby for his answers and suggested he leave.
"Thank you so much, admiral. Appreciate your time. He spent about … 40 minutes out here, so we try to get to as many people as possible," she said.
