During the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health on Wednesday, Joe Biden appeared to ask if Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) was in attendance. Walorski passed away during a car accident in August and was a key advocate in promoting a push to end hunger.
The leftist Daily Beast noted:
While boasting about the bipartisan effort to commit $8 billion to fund the conference’s call to action, Biden began thanking lawmakers who were pivotal in creating the initiative. After name-checking Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Mike Braun (R-IN), the president then appeared to refer to Walorski before wondering where she was. “Jackie, are you here? Where’s Jackie? She must not be here,” Biden said before moving on.
In a somewhat ironic twist moments later, the president would recount the close friendship he had with the late Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) while discussing the need for bipartisanship. Following Biden’s remarks, Director of Domestic Policy Council Susan Rice noted that “of course” the group misses Walorski, who “passed away in August.” Biden had released a statement honoring Walorski at the time of her death. While a tribute video honoring Walorski was set to play at the conference, the White House press pool reported that the clip was not aired while Biden was present.
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