A Joe Biden 2020 campaign ad resurfaced after the conviction of Kyle Rittenhouse. It began making the rounds following the verdict. In it, a picture of Rittenhouse is seen on the screen while soundbites in the background continually mention “white supremacy.” That has led many to wonder if the president himself could be one of the first targets of the defamation lawsuits that Rittenhouse and his lawyers are likely to unleash soon.
Today the White House was asked direct about its view on the matter. Fox News’ Peter Doocy (because no other “journalist” in the room would ever bring it up) asked Jen Psaki if Biden would consider apologizing for smearing Rittenhouse with false allegations of racism. Psaki’s answer was so incoherent that it left me wondering whether they actually want to be sued.
Doocy, “Would Kyle Rittenhouse ever forgive the president for calling him white supremacist?”
Psaki: The president is committed to condemning hate and division as well violence. This is exactly what happened in the video. pic.twitter.com/1liRDBYmEY
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) November 23, 2021
Is Psaki saying that Rittenhouse is responsible for “hatred, division, and violence”? Her comments sound as if the White House has stepped up its denigration of Rittenhouse, providing new evidence to his lawyers. The fact that Trump can be heard in the video doesn’t change its purpose, which is to portray Rittenhouse and his white supremacy.
There are facts to what actually happened in Kenosha last night. In the Rittenhouse Case, there were no hateful or divisive actions. There was also no violence. It was self-defense.
Psaki, however, doesn’t just try to cool the situation by offering clarification. Is this the real strategy? It would have been easy to say the president doesn’t believe Rittenhouse himself is a “white supremacist” and that the video is being taken out of context. By contrast, the White House’s position seems to be double-dog daring Rittenhouse to file suit.
To be honest, I do hope that he does. In more ways than one, this administration is lawless. This administration doesn’t believe that rules apply to it. The only way to change their attitude is to make them work for the money. Literally.
Doocy did further press Psaki, but she just kept repeating herself about hate and division. She didn’t offer any clarity. On that note, I will levy one criticism of the Fox News reporter: He should have immediately followed up by asking “Does Joe Biden believe Kyle Rittenhouse is a white supremacist?” That would have left her nowhere to go. She instead filibustered, until she was ready to move on.
In the end, I’m not so sure the White House doesn’t welcome this fight, though. Maybe they view it as an opportunity to divide and conquer. Because they certainly aren’t behaving as if they’d like to avoid litigation here.
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