President Biden made his first visit to the White House briefing room to hail positive economic news on multiple fronts, including the end of a dockworkers’ strike and positive job numbers.
Mr. Biden took the lectern Friday to praise the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance for reaching a tentative deal on wages.
“We averted what could have been a major crisis for the country,” he said.
He also crowed over an increase of 254,000 jobs in September, beating Wall Street forecasts.
“We proved them wrong,” Mr. Biden said.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre often brings guests to open the daily briefing, but Mr. Biden’s appearance was a bit of a shock, given his lack of previous visits.
“My name’s Joe Biden,” he said.
“We’ve been waiting for you,” a reporter said.
Mr. Biden, taking a few questions, balked at Republicans who said the job numbers were essentially “fake,” given previous downward revisions.
“If you notice, anything the MAGA Republicans don’t like, they call fake, anything,” Mr. Biden said. “The job numbers are what the job numbers are. They’re real, they’re sincere.”
Polls show the economy remains one of voters’ top concerns, due partly to Mr. Biden presiding over high inflation for much of his term in office.
The president said he remains concerned about whether former President Donald Trump will accept the election results in November.
“I’m confident [the election] will be free and fair. I don’t know if it will be peaceful,” Mr. Biden said, before adding about Mr. Trump and his allies, “I’m concerned about what they’re going to do.”
Mr. Biden said Israel should be “thinking about other alternatives” instead of striking Iran’s oil fields as the countries lob retaliatory attacks.
He also defended his record on support for Israel, after a reporter asked if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was stonewalling on a diplomatic solution to Middle East problems to influence the U.S. election.
“No administration has helped Israel more than I have, none, none, none, and I think Bibi should remember that,” Mr. Biden said. “Whether he’s trying to influence the election, I don’t know.”
Mr. Biden also hailed Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, as a key player in his administration and partner in legislative efforts.
“We’re singing from the same song sheet. She was a major player in all we’ve done,” he said.
His appearance ended in a helter-skelter manner, with reporters yelling questions at the president as he tried to edge out the door.
He finished with a joke about the presidential race: “I’m back in!”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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