Fox News reporter brings out the big guns to expose WH's double standard after Florida Democrats cancel presidential primary



Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich cornered the White House on Monday over its own double standard on accusations of voter suppression.

At the daily press briefing, Heinrich reminded White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre of previous statements the Biden administration has made about the issue. For example, President Joe Biden accused Georgia of passing new "Jim Crow" laws when it passed a law in 2021 strengthening election security, and Jean-Pierre herself claimed voter suppression occurred in Georgia last December when, in reality, there was record turnout.

"Does the White House still believe that that was true?" Heinrich asked.

"I don’t have anything else to add from what I stated last time," Jean-Pierre answered.

That's when Heinrich pulled out the big guns, invoking the Florida Democratic Party's decision to scrap its presidential primary despite the fact that there are Florida Democrats interested in casting a primary vote for a Democratic presidential candidate other than Biden.

"Does the Florida party, then, effectively canceling the Democratic primary also constitute voter suppression?" Heinrich asked.

"I can’t speak to that," the press secretary responded.

"Why not?" Heinrich pressed.

But each time Jean-Pierre refused to address the question and declined to explain why she did not want to answer it.

.@JacquiHeinrich: So, does the Florida Party, then effectively canceling the Democratic primary also constitute voter suppression?

KJP: I can't speak to that.

Heinrich: Why not?

KJP: You have to speak to the campaign or the DNC.

Heinrich: Does — does the White House have… pic.twitter.com/r2GTrr5YNV
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) December 4, 2023

The Florida Democratic presidential primary is essentially canceled after the party only submitted Biden's name for its 2024 primary ballot.

There are, however, several other Democrats campaigning against the president, including Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), Marianne Williamson, and Cenk Uygur. They are long-shot candidates at best, but they're running to give voters an alternative option. By denying them a spot on the primary ballot, the Florida Democratic Party is essentially denying Democratic voters the opportunity to use the ballot box to support other Democrats.

The Florida Democratic Party, for its part, is standing by the decision. Party officials claim they handled the balloting process by the book and allowing candidates other than Biden to be added to the ballot now would be "anti-democratic."

12/04/23: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Jake Sullivanwww.youtube.com

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Justice Department fires back 'terse' response after Biden speaks out about Jan. 6 investigation



The Justice Department shot back a "terse" response Friday to President Joe Biden's suggestion that individuals who ignore subpoenas related to a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6 riots at the United States Capitol should be prosecuted.

What did Biden say?

While speaking to reporters at the White House, Biden said any individual who ignores subpoenas related to the Jan. 6 investigation should be held "accountable."

"I hope the committee goes after them and holds them accountable," Biden said.

When a reporter followed up, asking Biden whether he thinks such individuals should be "prosecuted by the Justice Department," the president answered in the affirmative.

"I do, yes," Biden said.

What was the response?

Justice Department spokesman Anthony Coley fired back a "terse" response late Friday.

"The Department of Justice will make its own independent decisions in all prosecutions based solely on the facts and the law. Period. Full stop," Coley said.

Terse response from DOJ Spokesman Anthony Coley "The Department of Justice will make its own independent decision… https://t.co/nBc2AKxaO9

— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) 1634348718.0

Meanwhile, White House press secretary Jen Psaki was assigned to damage control duty. She followed up Biden's remarks by saying the White House supports the Justice Department's independence in any investigative matters related to Jan. 6.

"As @potus has said many times, January 6th was one of the darkest days in our democracy," Psaki said. "He supports the work of the committee and the independent role of the Department of Justice to make any decisions about prosecutions."

Anything else?

Biden's comments came after a lawyer for Steve Bannon, a top adviser to former President Donald Trump, said Bannon would not cooperate with the congressional committee investigating the riots. The committee is now preparing criminal contempt charges against Bannon for defying a subpoena.

"If the House moves to hold Bannon in contempt, which is likely with Democrats' slim majority, then the matter will be referred to the U.S. Attorney for Washington D.C. for criminal prosecution," Politico reported.

A lawyer for Trump has reportedly instructed former top officials not to cooperate with the congressional investigation.

Pentagon to relocate up to 30,000 Afghan refugees who worked for American government into the US



The Pentagon reportedly plans to immediately relocate tens of thousands of Afghan refugees into the U.S. in response to the Taliban's sweeping takeover of the country.

The plans were first reported by Fox News on Sunday after the news outlet obtained Department of Defense documents describing the relocation effort.

According to the documents, up to 30,000 Afghan refugees are slated to be transported to the U.S. and housed at military bases under the Special Immigrant Visa program, which grants asylum to foreign individuals who have worked for the U.S. government in some capacity.

"The situation in Afghanistan may lead to DoS [Department of State] allowing Afghan SIV applicants to be moved to temporary housing locations while still being vetted for parolee status," the document reportedly said.

Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby confirmed the plans to Fox News on Sunday, adding that Fort McCoy in Wisconsin and Fort Bliss in Texas are in line to receive refugees.

"We want to have the capacity to get up to several thousand immediately, and want to be prepared for the potential of tens of thousands," Kirby said. "Bliss and McCoy have the capability right now — and what's advantageous is with a little bit of work, they could increase their capacity in very short order."

🚨NEW, thread: Pentagon confirms to me the Department of Defense is preparing to house thousands of Afghan refugees… https://t.co/79y6tlWS9l

— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) 1629085430.0

Kirby also indicated that American citizens will not be given priority over the Afghan refugees in the evacuation from Kabul. Rather, the Defense Department will seemingly grab whoever they can, regardless of status, and then sort it out later.

"Once we get more airlift out of Kabul, we're going to put as many people on those planes as we can," he said. "There will be a mix, not just American citizens but perhaps some Afghan SIV applicants as well. We're going to focus on getting people out of the country, then sorting it out at the next stop. It's not going to be just Americans first, then SIV applicants. We're going to focus on getting as many folks out as we can."

Kirby's description of the operation shows how chaotic the situation is on the ground in Afghanistan. Taliban forces have conquered the entire country in a matter of weeks alongside the U.S.'s botched withdrawal, despite President Joe Biden's claims that such a takeover was "highly unlikely."

Last Friday, in response to the rapid takeover, the Pentagon rushed 3,000 troops back to Afghanistan to aid the evacuation of American citizens from the embassy in Kabul. On Saturday, Biden deployed thousands more to ensure "an orderly and safe" evacuation.

The relocation of Afghan refugees marks a policy reversal by the Biden administration. In July, the administration reportedly claimed it could not evacuate a number of Afghan translators because the asylum process differed from the one that governs the U.S. southern border.

The reversal comes as 60 Western countries issued a joint statement determining that Afghans and other international citizens who want to leave Afghanistan should be allowed to depart amid the Taliban takeover.