The White House defended President Joe Biden’s call to a hospital to help a friend as appropriate during Friday’s press briefing.
Biden said in a speech on Thursday that he had reached out to the Pennsylvania hospital, leading to criticism that he helped a politically connected person cut in line at the facility.
“That was not his intention,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki replied. “He was not trying to do that. He was checking in on a friend.”
FIVE REASONS BIDEN’S APPROVAL RATINGS HAVE TAKEN A POUNDING
“Do you know if this particular hospital was having staffing shortages because they have a vaccine mandate and maybe some folks have had to leave because they don’t want to get vaccinated?” Fox News’s Peter Doocy asked, continuing this line of questioning.
“I would love for you to account for me where that is the issue more so than the number of unvaccinated who are filling emergency rooms and ICU beds,” Psaki shot back. “That is the problem in hospitals across the country.”
“Last night, I was on the television, on television — I was on the telephone with a person at an emergency hospital ward in Pennsylvania because a good friend had called, and he had rushed his significant other to the emergency room because this woman was having trouble breathing, had a high fever, and could not really catch her breath,” Biden said in his Illinois speech. “And they got her into the hospital, but the waiting room was so crowded, things were so backed up — they couldn’t even get her to be seen initially.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE IN THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“And to make a long story short, it took a while because all of the — not all, the vast majority of the emergency rooms and the docs were occupied taking care of COVID patients,” he added.
Biden was speaking about COVID-19 vaccine requirements when he shared the anecdote.
