President Joe Biden called Fox News White House reporter Peter Doocy “a stupid son of a bitch” Monday on a live microphone after Doocy asked Biden whether inflation was a political asset to him.
The verbal slip took place during a White House event on the Biden administration’s efforts to combat inflation. After Biden complained that all the press questions were about the military buildup around Ukraine, Doocy shouted, “Will you take questions about inflation? Do you think inflation is a political liability ahead of the midterms?”
Thinking his microphone was turned off, Biden responded sarcastically, “No, that’s a great asset. More inflation.”
He added: “What a stupid son of a bitch.”
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment. Asked for comment, Doocy referred CNBC to Fox News communications, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Doocy regularly baits Biden during press events, shouting over other reporters and trying to catch the president off guard.
Biden has a long record of swearing on hot microphones, so the comments were not entirely out of character.
In 2010, Biden was famously caught telling then-President Barack Obama that passing the Affordable Care Act was “a big fucking deal.”
With inflation at levels not seen in decades, the White House has struggled in recent months with how to communicate with the public about the efforts it is making to help bring prices down long-term. In the short term, there is little that Biden, or any president, can do to reverse macroeconomic trends like increased consumer demand and supply chain snarls in Asia.
This is a developing story.
