Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi snapped at a reporter when she asked if she supported President Joe Biden’s candidacy in the forthcoming elections.
There have been growing calls for Biden to quit the presidential race following a dismal performance in a debate with Republican pick Donald Trump last month.
The video, which was tweeted by ABC reporter Rachel Scott, showed Pelosi growing irritable with the journalist as she constantly asked her questions about the 81-year-old US President.
“I’m not having any discussions with you, or anyone else, about what I talk to the President about, with all due respect,” Nancy Pelosi is heard telling the reporter in the video.
She stresses that she won’t make any comments about the “fate of our nation” in the hallway.
The journalist then asks Pelosi if she believes Joe Biden can win in the November presidential elections. To this, the former US House Speaker responds, “I think he can win November.”
At this point, when the ABC reporter asks Pelosi again about her opinion on Biden running for re-election, the former loses her cool.
“Am I speaking English to you? I’m not going to be making any statements about any of that right now in the hallway,” Pelosi says.
The video came after Nancy Pelosi’s interview with news channel MSNBC wherein she said that Joe Biden has a “decision” to make because “time is running short”.
“It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run. We’re all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short,” Pelosi said.
“I want him to do whatever he decides to do. And that’s the way it is. Whatever he decides, we go with,” she added later.
Joe Biden has reiterated several times over the past week that he won’t be stepping aside from the US presidential race. In a letter to fellow Democrats, the 81-year-old said that he wouldn’t have run for the top job if he wasn’t sure that he was the “best man to beat Donald Trump in 2024”.
Despite his firm stand, support for Biden dwindled further after Hollywood actor George Clooney, who co-hosted a star-studded fundraiser for Biden last month, withdrew his support for him. Also, Peter Welch became the first Democratic Senator to publicly ask Biden to quit the presidential race.