CNN’s Jake Tapper slams Biden officials for implying that reporters are siding with America’s enemies

On Thursday morning, February 3, President Joe Biden announced that ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi had been killed the day before during a counterterrorism raid by U.S. forces in Syria. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki later discussed the raid with NPR reporter Ayesha Rascoe, and CNN’s Jake Tapper was highly critical of Psaki’s response to Rascoe’s question.

Rascoe told Psaki that “there may be people who are skeptical of the events that took place” — and Psaki asked, “Skeptical…. that they are not providing accurate information…. and that ISIS is providing accurate information?”

Tapper, commenting on Psaki and Rascoe’s conversation, told viewers, “That’s Jen Psaki squaring off with NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe, who is often at this table, suggesting that if you are skeptical of what the U.S. Pentagon claims, then you are on the side of ISIS.”

Tapper went on to describe a different exchange in which Associated Press reporter Matthew Lee discussed the Biden Administration’s Russia/Ukraine policy with U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price at a press conference and said, “If you want to find solace in information that the Russians are putting out, that is for you to do.”

Tapper, drawing a parallel between those two exchanges, stressed to his CNN colleague Abby Phillip that the “jobs” of journalists “are to be skeptical” and that the Pentagon “have not only gotten things wrong before — they have openly lied to the American people before.” And he added, “You have Psaki and Price saying: Oh, so you side with our enemies.”