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White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby denied Monday that there was any “drama” around House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s planned visit to Taiwan after a reporter pointed out that President Biden publicly said last month the Pentagon wanted her to cancel the trip.
Pelosi (D-Calif.) is expected to visit the island nation Tuesday aboard a US military jet despite multiple Chinese threats — including one to possibly shoot down Pelosi’s plane.
RealClearPolitics reporter Philip Wegmann asked Kirby during a White House briefing why Biden chose to “bother with this drama” and not tell Beijing to “pound sand when they started belly-aching about the possibility of this trip.”
“What’s the drama?” Kirby asked in response.
“Have you watched the briefings the past couple of weeks? I mean, there’s been this question about whether or not the president wants to see her go,” Wegmann replied.
“I haven’t seen any drama. I think you’re manufacturing it with your question,” Kirby fired back.
“Look, we have been nothing but clear with the Chinese about where we stand on the issues and the ‘One China’ policy and our support for a free and open Indo-Pacific.
