On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was confronted with President Biden’s repeated watch-checking at the dignified transfer ceremony for 13 slain U.S. service members this weekend.
When Jen Psaki was asked about Gold Star Family members’ complaints regarding Biden checking his watch repeatedly, she did the only thing she really does in such situations. She swallowed hard and then dodged answering the question completely. Watch:
“Thanks, Jen. One question on the dignified transfer and then I want to get to Afghanistan,” Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich asked. “Some of the Gold Star families have criticized the President’s conduct at the dignified transfer.”
“There was a father of one Marine who said that the President appeared to be checking his watch every time a flag-draped transfer case came out of the plane,” she continued. “And a sister of another Marine said that it felt like a fake and scripted apology. Was the President looking at his watch, and does he have a message to those people who felt that they were offended?”
“I would say his message to all of the family members who were there, those who were not even in attendance, is that he is grateful to their sons and daughters, the sacrifice they made to the country, that he knows firsthand what it’s like to lose a child, and the fact that no one can tell you anything or say anything, or there’s no words that are going to fill that hole that is left by that,” Psaki replied.
“He’s not going to speak to, and I’m not going to speak to the private conversations. Of course, they have the right to convey whatever they would like, but I will tell you from spending a lot of time with him over the past couple of days that he was deeply impacted by these family members who he met just two days ago, that he talks about them frequently in meetings and the incredible service and sacrifice of their sons and daughters,” she added. “That is not going to change their suffering, but I wanted to convey that still.”
Psaki, of course, was indirectly alluding to the reaction of several Gold Star Family members to President Biden’s “disrespectful” behavior at the ceremony. Two parents of the fallen appeared on “Hannity” on Monday night to express their disbelief at Biden’s watch-checking antics.
“In reference to the checking of his watch, that didn’t happen just once,” Darin Hoover remarked. “It happened on every single one that came out of that airplane. It happened on every single one of them. They would release the salute, and he would look down at his watch on every last one. All 13, he looked down at his watch.”
“I leaned into my son’s mother’s ear in I said ‘I swear to god if he checks his watch one more time’ and that was probably only four times in, I couldn’t look at him anymore after that,” added Mark Schmitz. “Considering the time and why we were there, I found it to be the most disrespectful thing I’d ever seen.”
One anguished mother, named Shana Chappell, mother of Marine Lance Cpl. Kareem Nikou, also expressed shock and outrage at the Commander-in-Chief over his behavior at their private meeting.
“You then said you just wanted me to know that you know how I feel and I let you know that you don’t know how I feel and you do not have the right to tell me you know how I feel!” she said.
“[You] then rolled your f***ing eyes in your head like you were annoyed with me and I let you know that the only reason I was talking to you was out of respect for my son and that was the only reason why,” Chappell added. “I then proceeded to tell you again how you took my son away from me and how I will never get to hug him, kiss him, laugh with him again, etc.”
“[You] turned to walk away and I let you know my sons blood was on your hands and you threw your hand up behind you as you walked away from me like you were saying ‘ok whatever!!!” she continued.
“[By the way] as my son and the rest of our fallen Heros were being taken off the plane yesterday I watched you disrespect us all 5 different times by checking your watch!” she said. “What the f*** was so important that you had to keep looking at our watch?”
It appears that Biden’s ‘more important’ event was preparing to shout at the American people on Tuesday for his administration’s mistakes. He was nearly two hours late to that event. So it looks like President Biden doesn’t even know how to use his watch, anyways.
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OPINION: This article contains commentary which reflects the author's opinion.