White House issues 2nd clarification on Biden's presser, explains he wasn't doubting 2022 election

Less than 24 hours after President Biden's first press conference of 2022, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki is already on clean-up duty.
In addition to a Wednesday clarification regarding Biden's Russia-Ukraine comments, Psaki spoke up Thursday to correct the president's election legitimacy remarks, which she said were not intended to cast doubt on the upcoming 2022 midterms.
On Wednesday, Biden appeared to tie the legitimacy of the 2022 race to the passage of Democrats' voting rights legislation, saying the veritability of the results "depends on whether or not we're able to make the case to the American people that some of this is being set up to try to alter the outcome of the election," per The Hill. Then, in response to a follow-up, Biden said, "I'm not going to say it's going to be legit," in reference to the midterms, per The Washington Post. "It's — the increase and the prospect of being illegitimate is in direct proportion to us not being able to get these — these reforms passed."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Immediately, journalists and Republicans took issue with the president's remarks, notes the Post, with Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), for example, accusing him of forging "the same path that Donald Trump went down, which is attempting to delegitimize an election."
According to Psaki, however, Biden was "making the opposite point," she said. "He was explaining that the results would be illegitimate if states do what the former president asked them to do after the 2020 election: toss out ballots and overturn results after the fact."
"The Big Lie is putting our democracy at risk," she added. "We're fighting to protect it."
At least on Twitter, her correction did not go unnoticed.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Could Iran's water crisis be the regime's tipping point?
Today's Big Question Drought is a problem. So is government mismanagement.
-
Trump revives K-12 Presidential Fitness Test
Speed Read The Obama administration phased the test out in 2012, replacing it with a program focused on overall health rather than standardized benchmarks
-
El Salvador scraps term limits, boosting Nayib Bukele
Speed Read New constitutional changes will allow presidents to seek reelection an indefinite number of times
-
Trump revives K-12 Presidential Fitness Test
Speed Read The Obama administration phased the test out in 2012, replacing it with a program focused on overall health rather than standardized benchmarks
-
El Salvador scraps term limits, boosting Nayib Bukele
Speed Read New constitutional changes will allow presidents to seek reelection an indefinite number of times
-
Trump assigns tariffs, delays all except on Canada
Speed Read A 35% tariff on many Canadian goods has gone into effect
-
Harris rules out run for California governor
Speed Read The 2024 Democratic presidential nominee ended months of speculation about her plans for the contest
-
Trump sets new tariff rates as deadline nears
Speed Read New tariff rates for South Korea, Brazil and India announced
-
Ghislaine Maxwell: angling for a Trump pardon
Talking Point Convicted sex trafficker's testimony could shed new light on president's links to Jeffrey Epstein
-
Senate confirms Trump loyalist Bove to top court
Speed Read The president's former criminal defense lawyer was narrowly approved to earn a lifetime seat
-
Ghislaine Maxwell offers testimony for immunity
Speed Read The convicted sex trafficker offered to testify to Congress about her relationship with late boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein