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President Joe Biden appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” for his first online interview in 118 days Wednesday night.
The president began his first in-person appearance on a nightly talk show discussing gun control efforts with comedian and host Jimmy Kimmel. Biden wasted no time in pointing out to Republicans, “Much of it is intimidation by the NRA. Look, this is not your father’s Republican Party. This is a MAGA party.”
President Joe Biden appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on Wednesday, June 8, 2022 in Los Angeles. (Twitter / @ JimmyKimmelLive)
The president spoke of his recent trip to Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers were killed at Robb Elementary School.
“I met with all the family members of all those murdered children and the murdered teachers in Uvalde, Texas,” Biden said. “The stories they told and the pain in their faces.”
BIDEN’S INTERVIEW WITH JIMMY KIMMEL THIS WEEK WILL BE THE FIRST INSURANCE IN THE PRESIDENT’S NETWORK IN 118 DAYS
Kimmel then questioned Biden about the possibility of issuing an executive order on gun control, saying former President Donald Trump “passed them off as Halloween candy.”
The president replied: “I have issued executive orders within the power of the presidency to be able to deal with everything that has to do with weapons, the ownership of weapons … all the things that are in my power.”
He went on to accuse Trump of abusing the Constitution, saying he did not want to “emulate” his predecessor.
“But what I don’t want to do, and I’m not kidding, is I don’t want to emulate the abuse of the constitution and Trump’s constitutional authority,” Biden said.
The president then accused Republicans of endangering democracy.
“I’m often asked,‘ Republicans don’t play square, why do they play square? ’” Biden said. “If we do the same as them, our democracy would be literally in jeopardy. That’s not a joke! “
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Kimmel then told the president how he believes Democrats are frustrated because they won the House, Senate and White House and have made very little progress on weapons, reproductive rights, voting rights and climate change, saying “d somehow we “went back”.
Biden responded by stating that “we’ve actually made some real moves” on climate change. He cited efforts to boost solar and wind power as well as electric vehicles.
President Biden is interviewed by comedian Jimmy Kimmel. (“Jimmy Kimmel Live!”)
The president then painted a positive picture of the current economic conditions in the United States, despite the fact that Americans are facing record inflation and high gas prices.
“This is where we are,” he said. “We have the fastest growing economy in the world. We have 8.6 million new jobs since I took office. The unemployment rate has dropped to 3.6%. We reduced the deficit last year by $ 320 billion. This year we will reduce it by $ 1.7 trillion. “
He admitted that inflation is “the loss of our existence” and suggested that he wants to work to reduce the cost of health care, prescription drugs and childcare.
Biden told Kimmel that she has never been so optimistic in her life, saying that American children are the most educated, least prejudiced, and most feminine generation in U.S. history.
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The interview ended with Biden and Kimmel discussing the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court ruling that could overturn the historic abortion case Roe v. Wade. Biden said he does not believe “the country will support it” if the high court overturns Roe and hinted that there are some executive orders he could use to counter the outcome. He did not provide further details on possible executive orders.
Biden said that if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade and states begin imposing restrictions on abortion, it will provoke a “mini revolution.” He said many people could be voted out of office.
First Lady Jill Biden accompanied the president on the recording of the show. She was seen in the live studio audience wearing a mask and sitting next to several other members of the Biden family.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden pose with comedian Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday, June 8, 2022. (Twitter / @JimmyKimmelLive)
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Biden’s appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” it comes at a dangerous time for his presidency. Degree of approval of Biden it dropped to 39% at the end of May in an AP-NORC poll, his worst score since entering the White House. An ABC-IPSOS poll released on Sunday found that only 28% of Americans approve of Biden’s handling of inflation and 27% approve of its response to rising gas prices.
A PA poll from the same time last year showed that the president had a 63% approval rating, which was 24 points higher than his May 2022 rating.
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Ahead of Wednesday’s interview with Kimmel, the president joined NBC’s Lester Holt on Feb. 10 ahead of the Super Bowl, which marked his last major media appearance nearly four months ago. Biden then did two more friendly interviews, sitting with historian Heather Cox Richardson and progressive YouTube host Brian Tyler Cohen in late February.
Fox News’ Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.
Lorraine Taylor is the editor of Fox News. News tips can be sent to lorraine.taylor@fox.com or Twitter @LorraineEMT.