>> IN WASHINGTON. PRESIDENT
BIDEN IS ATTEMPTING TO CONTAIN
THE FALLOUT FROM A
CONTROVERSIAL REMARK HE MADE
OVER THE WEEKEND. THE
PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN,
QUOTE, CANNOT REMAIN IN POWER.
SOME HEARD THIS AS A CALL FOR
REGIME CHANGE IN RUSSIA.
PRESIDENT BIDEN WAS ASKED
ABOUT THAT YESTERDAY.
>> I'M NOT WALKING ANYTHING
BACK. THE FACT OF THE MATTER
IS I WAS EXPRESSING MORE
OUTRAGE. I FELT TOWARD THE WAY
PUTIN IS THE LEAD IN THE
ACTIONS OF THIS MAN WHICH JUST
JUST. BRUTALITY. I WANT TO
MAKE IT CLEAR I WASN'T THAN
NORM. I NOW ARTICULATING THE
POLICY CHANGE. I WAS
EXPRESSING MORE OUTRAGE AND I
FEEL I MAKE NO APOLOGIES
SHORT.
>> NBC NEWS WHITE HOUSE
CORRESPONDENT CARRIE LEE JOINS
US NOW. HEY, CAROL, GOOD
MORNING. SO YESTERDAY WE
TALKED THROUGH HOW THE WHITE
HOUSE WAS ESSENTIALLY PLAYING
DEFENSE OVER THESE FEW ADLIB
BOARDS AT THE END OF THAT
SPEECH OVER THE WEEKEND.
DIFFERENT FROM THESE NEW
REMARKS. WE NOW HAVE THE
PRESIDENT. WHERE IS THE WHITE
HOUSE AT NOW WITH TRYING TO
PUT THIS TO BED GIVEN THAT
STANDS. WE JUST HEARD THERE
FROM BIDEN.
>> GOOD MORNING, SAVANNAH AT
THE WHITE HOUSE ESSENTIALLY
FEELS THAT THE PRESIDENT
COMING OUT AND OFFERING HIS
OWN CLARIFICATION EXTENSIVELY
THAT THAT THAT IS SOMETHING
THAT THEY HOPE WILL PUT THIS
TO BED. THEY TRIED A NUMBER OF
TIMES TO CLARIFY THE REMARK
THROUGH ANONYMOUS WHITE HOUSE
OFFICIALS. THE SECRETARY OF
STATE. AND THAT JUST WASN'T
WORKING. THE PRESIDENT WAS
BEING CRITICIZED NOT ONLY FOR
WHAT HE SAID BUT ALSO FOR THE
FACT THAT HE WALKED BACK THEN
WHAT HE SAID THAT WAS SEEN AS
SOMETHING THAT WASN'T REALLY
BELIEVABLE AND ALSO
POTENTIALLY MAKING THE
PRESIDENT LOOK WEAK. SO WE SAW
HIM COME OUT INTENTIONALLY
TAKING QUESTIONS KNOWING WHAT
THOSE QUESTIONS ARE GOING TO
BE TO PUT HIS OWN
CLARIFICATION ON HIS INITIAL
COMMENTS. THE ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT HE ADDRESSED WAS
THIS CRITICISM THAT SOMEHOW
HIS COMMENTS WOULD POTENTIALLY
FURTHER PROVOKE VLADIMIR
PUTIN. TAKE A LISTEN TO THE
PRESIDENT'S RESPONSE.
>> GIVEN HIS RECENT BEHAVIOR.
PEOPLE SHOULD UNDERSTAND HE'S
GOING TO DO. HE THINKS HE
SHOULD DO HERE HE'S NOT
AFFECTED BY ANYBODY ELSE,
INCLUDING UNFORTUNATELY FOR
REZONE ADVISORS. THIS IS A GUY
WHO GOES IN AND BE HIS OWN
DRUMMER. AND THE IDEA THAT HE
IS GOING TO DO SOMETHING
OUTRAGEOUS BECAUSE I CALLED
HIM FOR WHAT HE WAS AND WHAT
HE'S DOING. I THINK IT'S JUST
A FRESHMAN.
>> THE PRESIDENT WAS ALSO
QUITE DEFIANT SAYING THAT HE
WAS NOT WALKING ANYTHING BACK
THAT HE MEANT WHAT HE SAID,
ALTHOUGH VERY AGGRESSIVELY
TRIED TO CLARIFY THAT THIS WAS
NOT A POLICY CHANGE THAT THE
U.S. POLICY IS NOT REGIME
CHANGE IN RUSSIA SAVANNAH, SO
THAT INITIAL COMMENT WAS
DURING THIS TRIP. THAT WAS TO
RALLY ALLIES AGAINST RUSSIA.
THAT'S WHEN WE SAW PRESIDENT
BIDEN IN POLAND. HOW HAVE
THOSE ALLIES RESPONDED TO THIS
REMARK. WELL, WE'VE SEEN A
NUMBER OF THEM COME OUT AND
SAY THAT BOTH PRIVATELY, WE
KNOW THAT SOME OF THEM HAVE
CONVEYED THEIR CONCERNS AND
PUBLICLY FRENCH PRESIDENT
EMMANUEL MACRON SAID THAT THIS
IS NOT SOMETHING THAT HE
AGREES WITH IN TERMS OF THE
PRESIDENT'S COMMENTS. AND SO
AT THE SAME TIME THAT THE
PRESIDENT WAS TRYING TO UNITE.
>> NATO ALLIES. HE SHOWED A
LITTLE BIT OF DIVISION AMONG
THEM WITH THESE COMMENTS. AND
ONE OF THE THINGS THE
PRESIDENT SAID YESTERDAY WAS
THAT NATO IS UNITED. HE TRIED
TO AGAIN, PUT JUST TO PUT THAT
ARGUMENT TO BED AND SAY THAT
THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT'S
DIVIDING NATO. NATO IS STILL
VERY UNITED IN TERMS OF
PUSHING BACK ON RUSSIA'S
AGGRESSION IN UKRAINE. SO
AGAIN, TRYING TO PUT THAT
CRITICISM TO THAT AS WELL.
CRIME, ONE HAD SAID THAT THEY
BE WATCHING THIS CLOSELY.
>> POINTED OUT THAT RUSSIANS
ELECT RUSSIANS, NOT PRESIDENT
BIDEN IN THE WAKE OF THAT
FIRST COMMENT. WHAT'S THEIR
LATEST RESPONSE, ESPECIALLY
WITH THESE NEW COMMENTS FROM
PRESIDENT BIDEN BACK HERE AT
HOME.
>> WELL, WE HEARD THE KREMLIN
SPOKESPERSON SAY THAT THIS WAS
SOMETHING THAT WAS
UNACCEPTABLE AND ALSO WAS
CRITICIZING PRESIDENT BIDEN
FOR WHAT HE SAID WERE
PERSONAL. IT INSULTS TOWARDS
RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR
PUTIN. YOU KNOW, THE U.S.
RESPONSE TO THAT AND THE
PRESIDENT ALLUDED TO THIS
YESTERDAY. IT'S JUST THAT HE
DOESN'T REALLY CARE WHAT WHAT
PUTTING THINGS IN THE IDEA
THAT THIS IS SOMEHOW INSULTING
FOR THE PRESIDENT TO CALL
PUTTING THESE NAMES AND TO SAY
THAT HE SHOULDN'T. THE EMPOWER
BASED ON HIS ACTIONS IN
UKRAINE. IS IS JUST KIND OF
LAUGHABLE BECAUSE OF ALL OF
THE STEPS THAT PUTIN HAS BEEN
TAKEN. SO THEY'RE VERY
DISMISSIVE OF IT. AT THE SAME
TIME, YOU KNOW, THEY THEY DO.
AND ONE OF THE INTERESTING
THINGS THE PRESIDENT SAID
YESTERDAY WAS THAT HE MAY BE
WILLING TO MEET WITH PUTIN IF
THE CIRCUMSTANCES WERE RIGHT
FOR THAT. AND SO THEY HAVEN'T
COMPLETELY CLOSED THE DOOR ON
SOME POTENTIAL IN THE FUTURE.
OUTREACH. THERE SOME OF THE
CONCERN OVER THOSE COMMENTS IN
THE FIRST PLACE. THAT WAS
ESSENTIALLY.
>> DOING THAT CLOSING THE DOOR
ON THE DIPLOMACY ROUTE.