‘How Is He?’: Reporter Asks Psaki About Biden’s ‘Mood’ After US Troops Killed In Afghanistan
CBS News reporter Ed O’Keefe asked White House press secretary Jen Psaki about President Joe Biden’s “mood” at a Thursday briefing hours after U.S. troops were killed in an attack outside Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan.
“How is he, how is his mood, in dealing with all these — with the incoming information — how is he in asking the questions to military commanders?” O’Keefe asked.
“I would say that anyone who’s watched the president up close … knows that putting the lives of service members at risk and those decisions that you have to make as commander in chief weigh heavily on him,” Psaki responded. “Any day where you lose service members is maybe the worst day of your presidency, and hopefully there’s not more. But we are certainly early in this presidency at this point in time.”
“He was somber and, as he said today, outraged at these terrorists taking the lives of service members, and he wanted to make clear to the public — he wanted to have all the information that he could before he spoke to the American people so he could convey exactly what we knew at the point in time … and he has wanted very detailed updates about exactly what we know about what is happening on the ground,” she continued.
WATCH:
Defense Department officials confirmed Thursday morning there were multiple explosions outside the airport’s Abbey Gate entrance. In addition to the explosions, there were reports of gunfire in the area surrounding the airport. (RELATED: ‘Their Best Military Judgment’: Biden Throws Generals Under The Bus For Bagram Withdrawal)
The Defense Department has confirmed 12 U.S. soldiers were killed and 15 were injured in the explosions. Afghan health officials estimated there were at least 30 to 40 confirmed total fatalities as a result of the attacks, according to The New York Times.
Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, head of the U.S. Central Command, told reporters during a briefing earlier Thursday that militants associated with ISIS-K were responsible for the attacks. The terrorist group later claimed responsibility on the social media platform Telegram.
Biden vowed to strike back against the ISIS-K and called the U.S. troops who were killed in the attack “heroes” during remarks Thursday evening.
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