Watch: Blinken laughs at senator’s conspiracy theory of Biden ‘mute button’

Name: Watch: Blinken laughs at senator’s conspiracy theory of Biden ‘mute button’
Uploaded: 2021-09-15T19:58:00.000+0400
Duration: 117 s
Description: US Secretary of State laughed at a Republican Senator’s conspiracy theory that someone in the White House had a “mute button” that was capable of stopping

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Tuqa Khalid, Al Arabiya English

Published: 15 September ,2021: 07:58 PM GST Updated: 15 September ,2021: 08:36 PM GST

US Secretary of State laughed at a Republican Senator’s conspiracy theory that someone in the White House had a “mute button” that was capable of stopping President Joe Biden from speaking midsentence.

Republican Senator James Risch questioned Antony Blinken multiple times about what the media dubbed the “Biden mute button” during Blinken’s testimony at a hearing about Afghanistan.

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“Somebody in the White House has authority to press the button and stop the president, cut off the president’s speaking ability and sound. Who is that person?” Risch asked.

“Somebody has the ability to push the button and cut off his sound and stop him from speaking. Who is that person?” he repeated.

“There is no such person,” Blinken responded.

“Are you telling me, this committee, that this does not happen? That there’s no one in the White House who pushes the button and cuts him off midsentence?” Risch asked again.

Blinken laughed and said: “That’s correct.”

“You’re telling us you don’t know anything about this. That somebody cuts him off at midsentence. Is that what you’re trying to tell this committee? Because everybody here has seen it,” Risch insisted.

To which Blinken replied: “Senator, I am telling you based on my own experience with the president over the last 20 years… the President very much speaks for himself… anyone who tried to stop him from saying what he wanted to say or speaking his mind would probably not be long for their job.”

The “mute button” idea apparently originated from a video clip tweeted by the Republican National Committee on Monday that shows Biden speaking at an event and then the White House feed cutting off. This is the tweet: