White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre shut down Fox News reporter Peter Doocy after he asked her about Vice President Kamala Harris allegedly developing a "Southern accent," prompting Jean-Pierre to show him what an "insane" the question really is.
Doocy asked:
“Since when does the vice president have what sounds like a Southern accent?”
Jean-Pierre laughed and replied:
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
Doocy continued, saying Harris "was talking about unions in Detroit using one tone of voice" while demonstrating "some type of Southern drawl" during a separate campaign event in Pittsburgh.
Jean-Pierre responded with the following, stressing to him what Americans actually "care about":
"Do you hear the question [that you're asking]? Do you think Americans think this is an important question? Do you know what they care about?"
"They care about the economy. They care about lowering costs. They care about health care. That's what Americans care about. That's what they want to hear."
"They care about—your colleague just asked me about [democracy], we went back and forth about democracy and freedom. That's what they care about. I'm not even going to entertain some question about... Hearing it sounds so ridiculous." ...
"The question is just insane."
When Doocy asked if this is how Harris "talks in meetings here," Jean-Pierre moved to call on another journalist and said:
"Peter, we're moving on."
Meanwhile, the Fox News newsroom opted to cut away from the exchange as you can see below.
Doocy was mocked profusely as a result.
Doocy's question is just the latest from the right-wing's attempts to undermine Harris in the weeks after former President Donald Trump claimed Harris "happened to turn Black” and suggested that “all of a sudden, she made a turn” in her racial identity in remarks he made at the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) convention in Chicago.
Trump was asked if he agreed with Republicans who have labeled Harris as a "DEI hire." Trump, who previously supported the racist "birther" conspiracy theory claiming that President Barack Obama is not a U.S. citizen, responded by casting doubts on Harris's heritage.
He said:
“She was always of Indian heritage, and she was only promoting Indian heritage. I didn’t know she was Black until a number of years ago, when she happened to turn Black, and now she wants to be known as Black. So I don’t know, is she Indian or is she Black?”
“I respect either one, but she obviously doesn’t, because she was Indian all the way, and then all of a sudden she made a turn and she went – she became a Black person. I think somebody should look into that too.”
This claim, meant to portray Harris as inauthentic, was shut down by Harris herself, who said Trump was merely giving the "same old show" to capitalize on "divisiveness and disrespect."
During her recent joint interview with her running mate, Tim Walz, Harris also refused to entertain a question about Trump's remarks from CNN anchor Dana Bash, only shaking her head and saying, "Next question, please" while criticizing Trump for sourcing his words from his "same old tired playbook."
