Reporters spar with press sec refusing to say if neurologist visited White House for Biden

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday sparred with CBS News senior White House correspondent Ed O’Keefe after the reporter asked if a Parkinson’s expert visited the White House regarding care for President Joe Biden.

The New York Times on Monday reported that Dr. Kevin Cannard, a Parkinson’s expert from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center “visited the White House eight times in eight months from last summer through this spring, including at least once for a meeting with President Biden’s physician.”

That report, according to the Times, was based on logs “released by the White House” that “document visits from July 2023 through March of this year.”

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O’Keefe on Monday pressed Jean-Pierre on the Times report.

“Could you stay very clearly yes or no?” O’Keefe asked. “Was that expert here to participate in anything surround put in the care of the president of the United States?”

Jean-Pierre responded by insisting the president had a “comprehensive physical examination” in February. But reporters weren’t satisfied with her response.

“You didn’t answer the question,” O’Keefe said.

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“I have to be super mindful here,” Jean-Pierre replied. “And this is why — I‘ll explain this to you in a second. There are thousands of military personnel who come onto this White House, many of them get the care from the White House medical unit. And so I need to be super careful.”

“I cannot speak to every person because there are actually there's actually a security reasons to protect their privacy,” she said. “We respect and protect people's privacy.”

“I'm not going to share people's names from here,” the press secretary added.

Reporters countered that she was avoiding “a very basic, direct question.”

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"No, no, no, no, no, no, no,” Jean-Pierre countered. “Wait a minute Ed, please. A little respect here, please.”

The secretary went on to say Biden has seen a neurologist “three times” and she cannot “for security reasons” share names.

“We cannot share names of specialists, broadly, from a dermatologist to neurologists,” she claimed. “We cannot share names. There are security reasons.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

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