总统乔·拜登周三，当被问及今年早些时候在车祸中丧生的印第安纳州女众议员的下落时，记者们要求白宫解释为什么他看起来很困惑，并且对答案不满意。
这一失误发生在拜登在白宫饥饿、营养和健康会议上讲话时，他的政府认捐80亿美元努力到2030年结束饥饿和减少与饮食相关的疾病。
正如他在此类活动中经常做的那样，拜登在提到已故众议员杰基·沃洛斯基(Jackie Walorski)时感谢了参与该问题的立法者，他作为共和党人代表印第安纳州第二国会选区长达九年。沃尔斯基和她的两名助手在8月3日的一场车祸中丧生。
“我要感谢在座的所有人，”拜登说，“包括两党的民选官员，如政府代表参议员布劳恩、参议员布克、众议员杰姬，你们在吗?杰姬在哪?我认为——她会在这里——帮助实现这一点。”
拜登似乎意识到了这句话的中间部分，他说，“我想——她会来的。”
沃尔斯基担任众议院饥饿问题核心小组的联合主席，并与参议员科里·布克、迈克·布朗和吉姆·麦戈文合作，通过了召开白宫饥饿问题会议的法案，这是50年来的第一次。
在她于8月去世后，拜登发表了一份声明，赞扬沃洛斯基在粮食不安全方面的工作。
“我们可能代表了不同的政党，在许多问题上存在分歧，但她受到了两党成员的尊重...我和我的团队感谢她的合作，因为我们计划在今年秋天召开一次关于饥饿、营养和健康的历史性白宫会议，这次会议将以她对美国农村需求的深切关注为标志，”拜登说。
In this July 18, 2028, file photo, Rep. Jackie Walorski participates in a House Ways and Means Committee Trade Subcommittee hearing in Washington, D.C.
比尔·克拉克/CQ-点名公司
白宫新闻秘书郭佳欣·让-皮埃尔在周三的新闻发布会上被反复问到拜登的错误。
“今天的饥饿事件发生了什么?”美国广播公司首席白宫记者塞西莉亚·维加问道。”总统似乎在房间里寻找一位听众，一位上个月去世的国会议员。他似乎暗示她可能在房间里。”
Jean-Pierre回应说，Walorski是拜登的“首选”，因为他提到了国会中支持召开第二次饥饿会议的人，因为Walorski的家人将于周五在白宫庆祝以她的名义签署的法案。
“所以，当然，她在他的脑海中，”让-皮埃尔说，并补充说，拜登期待“在本周五看望她的家人时，与他们讨论她出色的公共服务遗产。”
“但是他说杰基，你在吗?”维加催促。“杰姬在哪里?她一定不在这里。”
“我完全理解。“我刚解释过，她才是最重要的，”让-皮埃尔回答道。
房间里的其他几名记者也就这个错误向让-皮埃尔施压，其中一名记者问已故的国会女议员是否是“首要考虑”，为什么拜登似乎认为她可能在房间里。Jean-Pierre坚持她的回答，即Walorski是拜登的首选。这一明显的失态发生在一些共和党人质疑拜登的精神敏锐度之际。
Biden appears to look for congresswoman killed in car crash: 'Where's Jackie?'
PresidentJoe Bidenon Wednesday asked about the whereabouts of an Indiana congresswoman who was killed in a car crash earlier this year, prompting reporters to ask the White House to explain why he appeared confused and not be satisfied with the answer.
The misstep happened as Biden spoke at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, where his administrationpledged $8 billionin an effort to end hunger and decrease diet-related diseases by 2030.
As he often does at such events, Biden was thanking the lawmakers involved in the issue when he mentioned late Rep. Jackie Walorski, who represented Indiana's 2nd Congressional District as a Republican for nine years. Walorski and two of her aides were killed in a car crash on Aug. 3.
"I want to thank all of you here," Biden said, "including bipartisan, elected officials like representative of government Sen. Braun, Sen. Booker, Representative Jackie, are you here? Where's Jackie? I think -- she was gonna be here -- to help make this a reality."
It seemed like Biden perhaps realized mid-sentence, when he said, "I think -- she was gonna be here."
Walorski served as co-chair of the House Hunger Caucus, and worked with Sens. Cory Booker, Mike Braun and Jim McGovern to pass the bill to convene the White House conference on hunger -- the first in 50 years.
After her passing in August, Biden released a statement commending Walorski's work on food insecurity.
"We may have represented different parties and disagreed on many issues, but she was respected by members of both parties ... My team and I appreciated her partnership as we plan for a historic White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health this fall that will be marked by her deep care for the needs of rural America," Biden said.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was hit with repeated questions on Biden's mistake during Wednesday's briefing.
"What happened in the hunger event today?" ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Cecilia Vega asked. "The president appeared to look around the room for an audience member, a member of Congress who passed away last month. He seemed to indicate she may be in the room."
Jean-Pierre responded by saying Walorski was "top of mind" for Biden as he mentioned those in Congress who championed the effort to convene the second-ever hunger conference, and because Walorski's family will be at the White House on Friday to celebrate the bill signing in her honor.
"So, of course, she was on his mind," Jean-Pierre said, adding Biden looks "forward to discussing her remarkable legacy of public service with them when he sees her family this coming Friday."
"But he said Jackie, are you here?" Vega pressed. "Where's Jackie? She must not be here."
"I totally understand. I just explained, she was on top of mind," Jean-Pierre responded.
Several other reporters in the room also pressed Jean-Pierre on the error, with one reporter asking if the late congresswoman were "top of mind," why Biden appeared to think she may have been in the room. Jean-Pierre stuck to her answer that Walorski was top of Biden's mind. The apparent gaffe comes as some Republicans question Biden's mental acuity.
