Speaker 11: (35:56)I have two questions. One, this administration has long planned that you’re trying to be the most transparent in history. If that’s the case, why won’t you just release the number of breakthrough cases that you’ve had of vaccinated staffers?
Jen Psaki: (36:07)Well, I think first, we’re in a very different place than we were six to seven months ago as it relates to the virus. As many medical experts have said inside and outside of the government, those who are vaccinated are protected from serious illness. Most are asymptomatic if they are individuals who are vaccinated who get the virus. We are in a different place in terms of the impact of individuals who may have, as you said, breakthrough cases.
Speaker 11: (36:34)Why not just provide the number? Are you trying to hide something?
Jen Psaki: (36:36)No, but why do you need to have that information?
Speaker 11: (36:39)In the case of transparency and the interest of the public. That’d be a better understanding of how breakthrough cases work here in the White House.
Jen Psaki: (36:45)Well, first, there are the CDC tracks … Let me give you this information, too. The CDC tracks across the country, of course, hospitalizations and deaths, as we have seen. They also do a great deal of tracking in cohorts and ensure that … So let me give you a little more information on this, which I don’t know. Hopefully it’s of interest. So the way that … because people have asked this before. So the way the CDC is actively tracking breakthrough cases, there are tens of thousands of people across the country, of course, who are in what they call cohort studies, which the CDC is actively monitoring.
Jen Psaki: (37:20)For example, the CDC has a long-term care facility study, where it is getting data from more than 14,000 long-term care facilities. CDC has a healthcare worker study where they monitor vaccinated healthcare workers who get tested with PCR tests every single week. CDC also collects what they call passive surveillance, which is where hospitals provide CDC with data when they identify someone who is hospitalized, but has been vaccinated. So there’s a range of means our public health officials are tracking across the country, across DC, across any individuals here about who is vaccinated, who is getting the virus, getting hospitalized, hopefully not. It remains a small percentage.
Speaker 11: (38:01)Following up on the questions about Hunter Biden and his art shows, are there any specific procedures you can tell us that are being put in place to ensure that these conversations remain, as you say, not about the sales? Will he get ethics training? Will he have to report afterwards about the conversations? Anything specific you can tell us about how you are monitoring this?
Jen Psaki: (38:19)Well, again, I think it is certainly a commitment that has been made by all parties involved. He is not involved in the sale or discussions about the sale of his art, and he will not be informed of the sale of his art and who is purchasing that art. That is a commitment that’s been made, and we expect that all parties would abide by it. Go ahead, Kelly.
Kelly: (38:38)I wanted to ask about the CDC tracking-
Jen Psaki: (38:40)Sure.
Kelly: (38:41)… because, and you gave us some information just now, but as of May 1st, they stopped tracking breakthrough cases that did not result in hospitalization or death, with the exception of those kinds of tests that you just described. Should there be a more broader net on breakthrough cases with the president’s support to get a better picture of breakthrough and those White House employees, staff, EOP on the campus in any capacity who are not vaccinated, are they working here or are they working from home?
Jen Psaki: (39:14)Well, any individual who has chosen not to be vaccinated, same as in the press corps, the public health guidance is to wear a mask. That is the public health guidance that’s provided to employees as well.(39:24)
It is much more expensive than hospitalizations. That was what I was trying to convey. What the CDC does is they actively track breakthrough cases through these cohorts of individuals who are vulnerable populations, who have high risks of exposure. They, of course, include, as I noted, long-term care facilities, healthcare workers, and others who would be in those cohorts and categories. I would also note that because the vast majority of individuals who are vaccinated who test positive for COVID may be asymptomatic or have moderate or minimal cases, those are cases we may not know. We may not know about. Right?
Kelly: (40:08)The CDC says as of May 1st, they stopped tracking breakthrough cases that don’t result in hospitalization or death.
Jen Psaki: (40:14)They do track through these cohorts, which is a large swath of people who would be vulnerable or on the front lines of exposure.
Kelly: (40:20)My periodic question, it’s now past six months, when can we expect to know about a physical exam for the president and what are the plans for that?
Jen Psaki: (40:29)Absolutely, he will have a physical exam. Absolutely, you will know about the physical exam. I don’t have a date for you at this point in time. I expect you will continue to ask, as you should.
Jen Psaki: (40:38)Go ahead.
Speaker 12: (40:39)Yeah, Jen. Thank you. This is sort of a rhetorical question, follow-up on vaccinations.
Jen Psaki: (40:43)Okay.
Speaker 12: (40:45)It is a shame that people have to get very sick and some people have to die in order to increase the vaccination rate in many parts of this country. But isn’t that, I guess, a logical order of how this would play out or is there a political component to it, do you think?
Jen Psaki: (41:03)I’m not sure I’m following your question. Try again. Or tell me more about what you’re looking for.
Speaker 12: (41:07)Wouldn’t it be standard practice that people, if more people are getting sick in a certain area, that the people in that area who are unvaccinated would say, “Gee, I really need to go get vaccinated.” Isn’t that a logical order for this? Or is there a political component, do you think, that has kept people away from being vaccinated?
Jen Psaki: (41:28)Look, I think there are a range of reasons we’ve seen across the country why individuals have not yet been vaccinated. Some of it is misinformation, a large amount in our view. Some of it is fear. Some of it is they may feel time. Some of it is they’re young and they feel they’re superman or superwoman, and they’re not going to get sick. That shouldn’t be. We don’t want that to be the order of events.
(41:49)
It shouldn’t be that someone should have to know a neighbor who gets sick and hospitalized to motivate them to go to a hospital, I mean to go to get vaccinated. We don’t want that to be the case. We have seen anecdotally and through some of your, all of your reporting, that that has been the case in some communities. But certainly our objective is to communicate to people, this is not a political issue. It is not a partisan issue. This is about protecting lives. The virus does not discriminate between political party affiliation. (42:16)Go ahead.
Speaker 13: (42:17)The White House noted yesterday that 40% of cases are coming from three states with low vaccination rates, Florida, Texas, and Missouri. All three of those states have governors who in recent weeks have criticized the White House’s his strategy. One of them is even fundraising off of it, as you are probably aware. What’s being done to engage those governors, come up with a common message, common strategy to try and be one team with those governors in terms of fighting this virus?
Jen Psaki: (42:42)Well, I would say, first, our public health experts work with governors from across the country and work with local health officials from across the country in all of these states, especially the ones at this point in time where there are lower vaccination rates and we’re seeing the Delta variant spread. This is one of the reasons we rely so much on, hold on, I’m going to sneeze. Okay, hold on. Okay. Maybe it’ll come back. Sorry. A bit of a lead-in. This is why we rely on local messengers and why we rely on trusted voices, because whether it’s the President of the United States or the governor, sometimes those aren’t the people you trust. Sometimes that is too political or partisan for people. We understand that. That’s why we rely on and we’re funding and empowering local, trusted voices who aren’t seen through a political prism.
Speaker 13: (43:27)Then on the West Coast right now, we’re seeing wildfires in Oregon and Northern California. What steps is the administration taking to combat the current fires and also prevent additional fires this summer?
Jen Psaki: (43:38)Well, I appreciate you asking about this because, I mean, this has gotten a lot of attention across the country and we just haven’t talked about it a lot. There’s so much going on. One, the president receives regular reports on the wildfire situation. He’s quite focused on it. As I think you’re probably aware, but others may not be, the National Wildland Fire Preparedness Level is at a five, which is the highest level due to significant fire activity. As of today, 2.5 million acres have burned across the United States. In the past two weeks alone, the number of large, uncontained fires across the United States has increased by nearly 90%.
(44:11)
Right now, what we’re doing, one, the president’s very focused on this and wants regular updates. He’s regularly met with western governors and I expect he’ll do that again soon. The FEMA administrator is visiting Idaho, Oregon, and California this week to meet with state, federal and tribal partners and emergency groups about the worsening wildfire situation, to coordinate response efforts and discuss how the regions are addressing climate change and ongoing resilience work. We are also closely coordinating with officials on the front lines to provide federal assistance as needed, including by recently approving fire management assistance grants for fire departments in Oregon, California, and Washington, which are where there’s the collective threat to homes and major communities. We’re also continuing to monitor these fires from here. Again, the president receives regular updates and he’s quite focused on this.(45:02)Go ahead.
Speaker 14: (45:04)On Cuba, Congressman Maria Salazar says that the administration could turn the internet back on for Cubans within minutes. I guess there’s just technology to allow high-tech balloons to float over Cuba to act as towers. What’s being done, or can you provide an update on restoring internet service to Cuba?
Jen Psaki: (45:26)I wish it was that easy. We are exploring a range of options. We are quite focused and interested in restoring internet access to the people of Cuba, which we absolutely believe and agree, I would say, would provide information, would allow individuals to communicate and we feel if we can get it done, that would be a great step forward and beneficial to the people of Cuba. (45:50)Go ahead.
Speaker 15: (45:51)Thank you. You mentioned at the top that Republicans had also increased the debt ceiling and certainly spending has been bipartisan for many years. I’m wondering what the president’s long-term view of the country’s balance sheets are given that under current long-term CBO estimates that is never again expected to dip below 100% of gross domestic product and then, within 30 years, it is projected to hit 202% of gross domestic product.
Jen Psaki: (46:18)Well, first, I would say the president has proposed a way to pay for his proposals, which is something that is a fiscally responsible step. Some of his predecessors, the most recent one, did not do when he worked in advocated to support the passing of two trillion dollars in tax cuts that did not bear out the financial benefit he promised and also certainly added to the deficit. The president takes these issues seriously. He is focused on being a president who cares about the future of our, the next generations, and I think his actions have borne that out.
Speaker 15: (46:51)And then a quick follow-up. There was a lot of discussion about masking the other day. This administration has always followed CDC guidance. If the CDC was to say we need to return to masking, would this administration follow suit?
Jen Psaki: (47:04)We’re always going to follow the guidance of our health and medical experts. (47:07)Go ahead
Speaker 16: (47:07)Thanks, Jen. On the vaccine immunity, given that Pfizer’s now seeing waning immunity and separate from who is vaccinated and who is not, is the White House looking at models and projections that say in the next year, as everyone who has been vaccinated could start to lose that immunity, what does that look like for hospitalizations and deaths, et cetera?
Jen Psaki: (47:26)Well, first, I would certainly point to our health and medical experts to answer questions about future projections, about the impact of waning immunity. I will say that as they look at this data and assess from the CDC and other public health entities in the government, they certainly talk to private sector companies like Pfizer, but that’s only one source of data and engagement. They look at a range of data across the board as they make projections. We really rely on their broad data and projections as we assess what the future looks like.
Speaker 16: (48:00)Can I just follow up on Afghanistan? While you mentioned continuing US support, does that include continuing military support? I mean, we’ve seen a number of airstrikes that the US has launched on Taliban targets over the last 30 days. Could that continue past the end of the military mission at the end of August?
Jen Psaki: (48:14)I don’t have anything on that for you. I’d certainly point you to the Department of Defense. But what I was communicating about was over the coming weeks, we maintain our authorities, as you know, and we’ve provided a range of training and security assistance equipment to the Afghans and the leaders of Afghanistan as we transition to bringing our men and women home.
Speaker 17: (48:36)Thanks, Jen.
Jen Psaki: (48:36)Thanks so much, everyone. Have a great weekend.
Speaker 18: (48:38)Thanks, Jen.(39:14)
Well, any individual who has chosen not to be vaccinated, same as in the press corps, the public health guidance is to wear a mask. That is the public health guidance that’s provided to employees as well.
Jen Psaki: (39:24)It is much more expensive than hospitalizations. That was what I was trying to convey. What the CDC does is they actively track breakthrough cases through these cohorts of individuals who are vulnerable populations, who have high risks of exposure. They, of course, include, as I noted, long-term care facilities, healthcare workers, and others who would be in those cohorts and categories. I would also note that because the vast majority of individuals who are vaccinated who test positive for COVID may be asymptomatic or have moderate or minimal cases, those are cases we may not know. We may not know about. Right?
Kelly: (40:08)The CDC says as of May 1st, they stopped tracking breakthrough cases that don’t result in hospitalization or death.
Jen Psaki: (40:14)They do track through these cohorts, which is a large swath of people who would be vulnerable or on the front lines of exposure.
Kelly: (40:20)My periodic question, it’s now past six months, when can we expect to know about a physical exam for the president and what are the plans for that?
Jen Psaki: (40:29)Absolutely, he will have a physical exam. Absolutely, you will know about the physical exam. I don’t have a date for you at this point in time. I expect you will continue to ask, as you should.(40:38)Go ahead.
Speaker 12: (40:39)Yeah, Jen. Thank you. This is sort of a rhetorical question, follow-up on vaccinations.
Jen Psaki: (40:43)Okay.
Speaker 12: (40:45)It is a shame that people have to get very sick and some people have to die in order to increase the vaccination rate in many parts of this country. But isn’t that, I guess, a logical order of how this would play out or is there a political component to it, do you think?
Jen Psaki: (41:03)I’m not sure I’m following your question. Try again. Or tell me more about what you’re looking for.
Speaker 12: (41:07)Wouldn’t it be standard practice that people, if more people are getting sick in a certain area, that the people in that area who are unvaccinated would say, “Gee, I really need to go get vaccinated.” Isn’t that a logical order for this? Or is there a political component, do you think, that has kept people away from being vaccinated?
Jen Psaki: (41:28)Look, I think there are a range of reasons we’ve seen across the country why individuals have not yet been vaccinated. Some of it is misinformation, a large amount in our view. Some of it is fear. Some of it is they may feel time. Some of it is they’re young and they feel they’re superman or superwoman, and they’re not going to get sick. That shouldn’t be. We don’t want that to be the order of events.
(41:49)
It shouldn’t be that someone should have to know a neighbor who gets sick and hospitalized to motivate them to go to a hospital, I mean to go to get vaccinated. We don’t want that to be the case. We have seen anecdotally and through some of your, all of your reporting, that that has been the case in some communities. But certainly our objective is to communicate to people, this is not a political issue. It is not a partisan issue. This is about protecting lives. The virus does not discriminate between political party affiliation.(42:16)Go ahead.
Speaker 13: (42:17)The White House noted yesterday that 40% of cases are coming from three states with low vaccination rates, Florida, Texas, and Missouri. All three of those states have governors who in recent weeks have criticized the White House’s his strategy. One of them is even fundraising off of it, as you are probably aware. What’s being done to engage those governors, come up with a common message, common strategy to try and be one team with those governors in terms of fighting this virus?
Jen Psaki: (42:42)Well, I would say, first, our public health experts work with governors from across the country and work with local health officials from across the country in all of these states, especially the ones at this point in time where there are lower vaccination rates and we’re seeing the Delta variant spread. This is one of the reasons we rely so much on, hold on, I’m going to sneeze. Okay, hold on. Okay. Maybe it’ll come back. Sorry. A bit of a lead-in. This is why we rely on local messengers and why we rely on trusted voices, because whether it’s the President of the United States or the governor, sometimes those aren’t the people you trust. Sometimes that is too political or partisan for people. We understand that. That’s why we rely on and we’re funding and empowering local, trusted voices who aren’t seen through a political prism.
Speaker 13: (43:27)Then on the West Coast right now, we’re seeing wildfires in Oregon and Northern California. What steps is the administration taking to combat the current fires and also prevent additional fires this summer?
Jen Psaki: (43:38)Well, I appreciate you asking about this because, I mean, this has gotten a lot of attention across the country and we just haven’t talked about it a lot. There’s so much going on. One, the president receives regular reports on the wildfire situation. He’s quite focused on it. As I think you’re probably aware, but others may not be, the National Wildland Fire Preparedness Level is at a five, which is the highest level due to significant fire activity. As of today, 2.5 million acres have burned across the United States. In the past two weeks alone, the number of large, uncontained fires across the United States has increased by nearly 90%.
(44:11)Right now, what we’re doing, one, the president’s very focused on this and wants regular updates. He’s regularly met with western governors and I expect he’ll do that again soon. The FEMA administrator is visiting Idaho, Oregon, and California this week to meet with state, federal and tribal partners and emergency groups about the worsening wildfire situation, to coordinate response efforts and discuss how the regions are addressing climate change and ongoing resilience work. We are also closely coordinating with officials on the front lines to provide federal assistance as needed, including by recently approving fire management assistance grants for fire departments in Oregon, California, and Washington, which are where there’s the collective threat to homes and major communities. We’re also continuing to monitor these fires from here. Again, the president receives regular updates and he’s quite focused on this.(45:02)Go ahead.
Speaker 14: (45:04)On Cuba, Congressman Maria Salazar says that the administration could turn the internet back on for Cubans within minutes. I guess there’s just technology to allow high-tech balloons to float over Cuba to act as towers. What’s being done, or can you provide an update on restoring internet service to Cuba?
Jen Psaki: (45:26)I wish it was that easy. We are exploring a range of options. We are quite focused and interested in restoring internet access to the people of Cuba, which we absolutely believe and agree, I would say, would provide information, would allow individuals to communicate and we feel if we can get it done, that would be a great step forward and beneficial to the people of Cuba. (45:50)Go ahead.
Speaker 15: (45:51)Thank you. You mentioned at the top that Republicans had also increased the debt ceiling and certainly spending has been bipartisan for many years. I’m wondering what the president’s long-term view of the country’s balance sheets are given that under current long-term CBO estimates that is never again expected to dip below 100% of gross domestic product and then, within 30 years, it is projected to hit 202% of gross domestic product.
Jen Psaki: (46:18)Well, first, I would say the president has proposed a way to pay for his proposals, which is something that is a fiscally responsible step. Some of his predecessors, the most recent one, did not do when he worked in advocated to support the passing of two trillion dollars in tax cuts that did not bear out the financial benefit he promised and also certainly added to the deficit. The president takes these issues seriously. He is focused on being a president who cares about the future of our, the next generations, and I think his actions have borne that out.
Speaker 15: (46:51)And then a quick follow-up. There was a lot of discussion about masking the other day. This administration has always followed CDC guidance. If the CDC was to say we need to return to masking, would this administration follow suit?
Jen Psaki: (47:04)We’re always going to follow the guidance of our health and medical experts. (47:07)Go ahead
Speaker 16: (47:07)Thanks, Jen. On the vaccine immunity, given that Pfizer’s now seeing waning immunity and separate from who is vaccinated and who is not, is the White House looking at models and projections that say in the next year, as everyone who has been vaccinated could start to lose that immunity, what does that look like for hospitalizations and deaths, et cetera?
Jen Psaki: (47:26)Well, first, I would certainly point to our health and medical experts to answer questions about future projections, about the impact of waning immunity. I will say that as they look at this data and assess from the CDC and other public health entities in the government, they certainly talk to private sector companies like Pfizer, but that’s only one source of data and engagement. They look at a range of data across the board as they make projections. We really rely on their broad data and projections as we assess what the future looks like.
Speaker 16: (48:00)Can I just follow up on Afghanistan? While you mentioned continuing US support, does that include continuing military support? I mean, we’ve seen a number of airstrikes that the US has launched on Taliban targets over the last 30 days. Could that continue past the end of the military mission at the end of August?
Jen Psaki: (48:14)I don’t have anything on that for you. I’d certainly point you to the Department of Defense. But what I was communicating about was over the coming weeks, we maintain our authorities, as you know, and we’ve provided a range of training and security assistance equipment to the Afghans and the leaders of Afghanistan as we transition to bringing our men and women home.
Speaker 17: (48:36)Thanks, Jen.
Jen Psaki: (48:36)Thanks so much, everyone. Have a great weekend.
Speaker 18: (48:38)Thanks, Jen.