Reporter Asks Psaki Point Blank If Biden Blames Her For Disastrous Polling Numbers

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday she hopes President Joe Biden doesn’t blame her for his low approval ratings.

“When [Biden] came into office last year, he was around 60% and even more, and now he’s around 40% and sometimes less.” Today News Africa correspondent Simon Ateba asked Psaki. “Who does he blame now: Putin, Trump, you — the communication team?”

“Oh, does he blame me? Oh, I don’t know,” Psaki said while laughing. “I hope not.”

“Look, I think that the president recognizes that the country is still grappling with a small number of challenges that impact people and their everyday lives, whether that is a continuing fight with a pandemic that has been going on for several years or the fact that costs are going up. Some of those are a result of the actions of President Putin — yes, as it relates to gas prices — but others are related to impacts of COVID-19 and impacts on the supply chain.”

“So, what our focus is and his focus continues to be: on solutions to address these challenges, and keeping our heads down and trying to continue to deliver for the American people,” she added. (RELATED: ‘We’re Going To Get Slaughtered’: Biden’s Poll Numbers Trigger Panic Mode For Democrats)

A recently released NBC News Poll revealed Biden’s approval rating hit new lows amid the war in Ukraine and surging inflation. Among those polled, 40% approved of Biden’s handling of the presidency, with just 16% strongly approving. Thirty-eight percent of those polled blamed Biden for surging inflation.

The poll was conducted between March 18-22 among 1,000 adults, 790 of whom are registered voters. There was a 3.1% margin of error among respondents.