MSNBC Host Praises Jen Psaki’s Press Secretary Tenure

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• MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell praised former White House press secretary Jen Psaki, calling her the best in the role, despite her efforts to downplay concerns about President Joe Biden’s health.
• O’Donnell criticized Trump administration press secretaries for allegedly telling “obvious lies” and contrasted them with Psaki’s approach.
• Psaki faced scrutiny for her statements about Biden’s health and other incidents, including retracting claims about Biden’s actions during a military ceremony.

In a recent broadcast, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell showered accolades on former White House press secretary Jen Psaki, portraying her as a paragon of “sanity” during her tenure. This praise comes amid revelations that Psaki was involved in efforts to shield then-President Joe Biden’s declining health from public scrutiny.

A piece from December 19 highlighted how White House aides went to great lengths to “insulate” Biden, even keeping him at a distance from his own Cabinet members. This was part of a broader pattern of concealment as Biden’s health waned. Despite these efforts, O’Donnell asserted that Psaki’s performance was exemplary, unlike the “obvious lies” he claimed were told by Trump administration press secretaries.

“When Jen Psaki stepped up to the podium in the White House press briefing room for that very first time, I was watching and I knew very quickly that I was watching the best White House press secretary I had ever seen,” O’Donnell stated.

He further criticized the Trump-era press secretaries, describing them as the “worst press secretaries in the history of that job.”

O’Donnell, who was a writer and executive producer for “The West Wing,” an Emmy-winning drama about the White House, expressed disbelief at the notion of a press secretary engaging in deceitful practices.

He remarked, “If anyone in the writers’ room there ever suggested that we send the press secretary into our White House press briefing room… and have her just tell obvious lies from start to finish to the press, I would have been among the first to say that that would never happen.”

Despite the accolades from O’Donnell, Psaki’s time as press secretary was not without controversy. In May 2021, she claimed it was challenging to keep pace with Biden, following incidents where he stumbled on the steps to Air Force One. Additionally, she had to retract a statement from a 2024 book where she denied Biden checked his watch during a ceremony for soldiers killed in Kabul, a claim that drew ire from the families involved.

Throughout Biden’s presidency, questions about his health persisted. On several occasions, he mentioned speaking with deceased individuals, including former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and former French President Francois Mitterrand.

In September 2022, Biden mistakenly inquired about Republican Rep. Jackie Walorski, weeks after she had died in a car accident.

Biden’s physical mishaps, such as falls at the Air Force Academy and while biking, further fueled concerns. Adjustments, like using different stairs on Air Force One, were made to accommodate his age as his administration progressed.

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