During a Thursday press conference following an emergency NATO summit in Brussels to address the war in Ukraine, President Biden was pressed by CBS News correspondent Christina Ruffini on the fact that economic sanctions failed to deter Russian dictator Vladimir Putin from attacking Ukraine. Despite clear evidence to the contrary, Biden angrily denied that sanctions were ever meant to be a form of deterrence and accused Ruffini of “playing a game” with him.
“Sir, deterrence didn’t work. What makes you think Vladimir Putin will alter course based on the action you’ve taken today?” Ruffini asked at the end of the brief presser. Biden huffed in reply: “Let’s get something straight, do you remember, if you covered me, from the very beginning I did not say that, in fact, the sanctions would deter him.” He then proclaimed: “Sanctions never deter. You keep talking about that. Sanctions never deter.”
Undeterred herself, Ruffini followed up: “Do you believe the actions today will have an impact on making Russia change course in Ukraine?” Biden grew even more agitated: “That’s not what I said, you’re playing a game with me, I know. The answer’s no.”
Full Transcript
JOE BIDEN: Someone I haven’t called on before. You. Who are you?
CHRISTINA RUFFINI: I’m Christina Ruffini from CBS. Thank you, sir.
BIDEN: Okay.
RUFFINI: Sir, deterrence didn’t work. What makes you think Vladimir Putin will alter course based on the action you’ve taken today?
BIDEN: Let’s get something straight, do you remember, if you covered me, from the very beginning I did not say that, in fact, the sanctions would deter him. Sanctions never deter. You keep talking about that. Sanctions never deter. The maintenance of sanctions, the maintenance of sanctions, the increasing the pain, and the demonstration – why I asked for this NATO meeting today – is to be sure that after a month we will sustain what we’re doing, not just next month, the following month, but for the remainder of this entire year. That’s what will stop him.
RUFFINI: Do you believe the actions today will have an impact on making Russia change course in Ukraine?
BIDEN: That’s not what I said, you’re playing a game with me, I know. The answer’s no. I think what happens is we have to demonstrate – the purpose – the single most important thing is for us to stay unified and the world continue to focus on what a brute this guy is and all the innocent people’s lives are being lost and ruined and what’s going on. That’s the important thing.
But look, if you’re Putin and you think that the – that Europe is going to crack in a month or six weeks, or two months, why not – they can take anything for another month. But we have to demonstrate. The reason I asked for the meeting, we have to stay fully, totally, thoroughly united. Thank you.
MAJOR GARRETT: CBS correspondent Christina Ruffini getting that last question in to President Biden. History will record that before this invasion of Ukraine began, several administration officials representing the President of the United States, Joseph Biden, said in fact sanctions might deter that invasion. The President just said, again, emphatically, they don’t deter, what they do is they sustain pressure over time hoping to achieve a different result.
Ed O’Keefe, our White House correspondent, is outside NATO headquarters, joins us now. Ed, your thoughts?
ED O’KEEFE: Well, you make a good point there, that yes, in the lead-up to all of this, administration had said this was designed to deter and the story has changed since they were enacted.
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