(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre opted not to take sides too prematurely in a standoff between its Chinese puppetmasters and the most powerful woman in Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Simmering tensions came to a boil after Chinese state media made clear their intention to shoot Pelosi’s plane out of the sky if she attempted to land in Taiwan, the independent, self-governing democratic republic that China claims as its own.
If US fighter jets escort Pelosi’s plane into Taiwan, it is invasion. The PLA has the right to forcibly dispel Pelosi’s plane and the US fighter jets, including firing warning shots and making tactical movement of obstruction. If ineffective, then shoot them down. https://t.co/V7LhrXgXoM
— Hu Xijin 胡锡进 (@HuXijin_GT) July 29, 2022
Twitter users, including conservatives, reacted in shock to the provocation, according to Twitchy.
Where IS Biden?
The Chinese are threatening to kill the Speaker of the House and he's…napping? https://t.co/Ng8tfgT2Ti
— Matt Cover (@MattCover) July 29, 2022
But in response to a question from Fox News’s Peter Doocy, Jean-Pierre dismissed the threat as merely hypothetical in a stilted and sputtering response.
“I know you’re asking specifically about the rhetoric that we’re hearing from China, but as it relates to the speaker’s travels, it’s something that we’re just not goint to speak to,” Jean-Pierre said. “Right now that’s a hypothetical—we’re just not going to speak on her schedule.”
Pelosi herself seemed to dismiss the threat earlier in the week.
“I think what the president was saying is [that] maybe the military was afraid our plane would get shot down or something like that by the Chinese,” she said after President Joe Biden issued public statements. “I’ve heard it anecdotally, but I haven’t heard it from the president.”
She refused to confirm or deny whether her upcoming trip would include a stop in Taiwan.
As third in the line of succession, Pelosi would stand to take over the presidency if both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were determined to be unfit for office or incapacitated.
There is no clear line of succession for the House speakership, although recent reports indicated that Pelosi has been grooming fellow California Democrat Rep. Adam Schiff for the post.
Ben Sellers is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at truthsocial.com/@bensellers.
