White House Cuts Biden Audio Feed During Afghanistan Question

Listen, I’ve covered White Houses for a long time now. And what happened Wednesday afternoon was… something.

As President Biden wrapped up a meeting on cybersecurity in the State Dining Room, NBC’s Peter Alexander asked what many Americans want to know: “If Americans are still in Afghanistan after the deadline, what will you do?”

And then the White House cut the audio feed.

Newsweek reports that Biden’s initial response was a smirk. Then, as the audio feed cut off, Biden could be seen saying something to Alexander. Other reporters in the pool confirmed what he said: “You’ll be the first person I call.”

Alexander tweeted: “I asked President Biden what he will do if Americans are still in Afghanistan after the 8/31 deadline. His response: ‘You’ll be the first person I call.’ Took no questions.”

Audacy’s coverage notes that Republicans were particularly upset by what they called a “snarky” response about a serious situation.

During the afternoon briefing, Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked about the exchange. She said the president was conveying that they are “on track to complete our mission by August 31st.”

Now look – feeds get cut all the time at the end of press events. That’s normal White House procedure. Whether this particular cut was coincidental or intentional… I can’t tell you. The Biden administration has faced scrutiny on various fronts, including how migrants hoping for a warmer welcome found themselves in difficult situations.

What I can tell you is that with thousands of Americans still in Afghanistan, with a Taliban deadline looming, maybe joking around isn’t the best look.

Secretary of State Blinken said that day that 82,300 people had been evacuated since August 14, including about 4,500 Americans. But estimates of Americans still in country ranged from 1,000 to several thousand more.

The whole thing left a bad taste in peoples mouths. And I understand why.