White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre Hangs Up on Interviewer After Being Asked If Joe Biden Has 'Dementia'

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre abruptly ended a radio interview with Charlotte’s WBT News Director Mark Garrison on Tuesday, March 26, after he began to question President Joe Biden's mental health and economic policies.

Garrison stirred up drama by asking Jean-Pierre, "When I told a number of people that I was talking to you today, it was interesting though. They all said, 'Would you please just ask her? Does the president have dementia?' And so, before I move on from it, does he?" Jean-Pierre, taken aback, responded sharply, labeling the question as offensive.

She expressed her disbelief at being asked such a question and emphasized the president’s commitment to the American people and his track record of impactful actions.

"For the past several years, the president’s physician has laid out very, in a comprehensive way, the president’s health. This is a president — if you watch him every day, if you really pay attention to his record and what he has done, you will see exactly how focused he’s been on the American people, how historic his actions have been," Jean-Pierre told Garrison. "And so I’m not even going to truly, truly, really, you know, take, take the premise of your question. I think it is incredibly insulting. And, and so we can, you know, we can move on to the next question."

Shifting away from Biden's age, Garrison moved on to the president's economic policies. "Gas prices and grocery prices are big topics here in North Carolina. How does Mr. Biden win votes when people don’t have as much disposable income?"

"Look, the president understands," the press secretary answered. "He grew up in a middle-class family. Working class family in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He gets it. He understands how difficult it is for Americans who are sitting around their kitchen table every month trying to figure out what they’re going to pay for. You have to remember, when the president walked into this administration, there were multiple crises happening."

Following these discussions, Jean-Pierre concluded the call, with White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates later clarifying the situation.

"As she often does when the president travels, Karine had multiple back-to-back interviews with radio stations who were each offered 7 minutes," Bates explained. "Once the agreed-upon time was over, she called into the next interview so everyone could get their full time."

He claimed this specific station chose not to air the full interview.