In another example of White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki's ability to handle anything politely—even the ridiculous—Psaki swiftly shut down a conservative reporter's strange complaint about Vice President Kamala Harris visiting a Chicago bakery.
Tabloid publication The New York Post correspondent Steven Nelson criticized Harris' appointment as point-person on the border crisis by saying her only visit had been to a "bakery in Chicago," implying the bakery was a severe deferment of her duties as Vice President.
Conservative media dubbed the question hard-hitting journalism.
Nelson stated:
"She hasn't visited the border or Central America or spoken with leaders of El Salvador or Honduras."
"She traveled this week, took time to visit a bakery in Chicago."
"I'm wondering is she still working on this [border issue] and can you address the perception that she's kind of quietly backing off?"
Psaki, after addressing there was a lot packed into the question, said Harris was "visiting Chicago actually to talk COVID and the importance of communities getting the vaccine when it's available and accessible to them."
And as for the bakery?
"And so while she was there, like many Americans, she got a snack. I think she's allowed to do that."
Former Vice President Mike Pence had a penchant for disappearing for weeks at a time, even after the pandemic crisis in the United States reached fever pitch.
Pence was in charge of the task force meant to respond to the virus.
The Biden/Harris administration have already surpassed their goal of 100 million vaccines given to Americans within 100 days with days to spare. Psaki has consistently fielded torrents of questions from right-wing media seeking to discredit the administration in any way possible.
Snackgate—like its predecessors—went down in flames.
Psaki's subtle style seems to be exactly what is needed to keep these kinds of questions in check.
