White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dodged a question on Monday about the administration potentially recommending that Americans have no more than two alcoholic drinks per week.

A reporter asked Jean-Pierre about recent reports that Dr. George Koob, who serves as President Joe Biden’s alcohol czar, may make the recommendation official.

“Does President Biden want to limit Americans to two beers a week?” the reporter asked.

Jean-Pierre said she had no idea what the reporter was talking about and once the reporter explained the situation she said that she would defer to the experts.

“Let me tell you what I’m not going to get involved in — in that in that question right there,” she responded.  “I — I have no idea. I’ve not seen the data. I cannot speak to this. I will leave it to the experts and not weigh in.”

WATCH:

Biden admin "health experts" are considering a recommendation that Americans only drink TWO beers a week.

Doocy immediately asks KJP about it.

She hasn't held a presser in 14 days and was totally clueless about the news which was widely reported today.pic.twitter.com/kJkmNQA2GE

— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) August 28, 2023

TRANSCRIPT:

REPORTER: Does President Biden want to limit Americans to two beers a week?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I — I — where is this coming from?

REPORTER: It’s coming —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Maybe I did- — maybe I didn’t miss you so much. (Laughter.)

Where is this — where is this coming from?

REPORTER: All right, well —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: (Laughs.)

REPORTER: Dr. George Koob, who is the director of the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, says the U.S. may soon follow Canada and recommend just two beers a week. How do you guys think that’s going to go over?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Let me tell you what I’m not going to get involved in — in that in that question right there. I — I have no idea. I’ve not seen the data. I cannot speak to this. I will leave it to the experts and not weigh in.

REPORTER: So, if the experts say two beers a week —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I — I —

REPORTER: — that’s okay with President Biden?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I will leave it to the experts. I’m just not going to comment on that.

Chairman of the Federal Reserve Jerome Powell hinted that more interest rate hikes may be coming during a speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday.

Powell along with other central bank officials and finance and economics experts met for the annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium last week to discuss the state of the economy and the Federal Reserve’s efforts to curb inflation. He said the U.S. may not have hit its interest rate peak yet.

“We have tightened policy significantly over the past year. Although inflation has moved down from its peak — a welcome development — it remains too high,” Powell said, according to a transcript of his remarks. “We are prepared to raise rates further if appropriate, and intend to hold policy at a restrictive level until we are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward our objective.”

In order to rein in inflation to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target rate, the central bank has hiked the federal funds rate to 5.5%, the highest rate in over two decades. The Fed has also used its economic levers to pull money out of circulation in order to tamp down on economic activity and slow inflation. Despite its efforts, the economy continues to hum faster than expected, Powell said.

“So far this year, GDP growth has come in above expectations and above its longer-run trend, and recent readings on consumer spending have been especially robust. In addition, after decelerating sharply over the past 18 months, the housing sector is showing signs of picking back up,” the chairman said. “Additional evidence of persistently above-trend growth could put further progress on inflation at risk and could warrant further tightening of monetary policy.”

Powell’s uncertainty about the future of the American economy was seconded by other top central bank officials and experts at the conference.

Kristin Forbes, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said that the Fed’s current position is similar to a hiker attempting to summit a mountain when the trail has disappeared.

“You know where you want to go. You know where the summit is, but there are no more markers and you have to feel your way,” Forbes told The Wall Street Journal. “And even though you’ve covered most of the distance, that can be the hardest part. It’s steeper. It’s rockier.”

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said the central bank is close, but it may need to raise interest rates at least one more time before it hits the peak.

“We are very close to a good point, and then we’ll let the economy tell us” when interest rates can start to come back down again, she told WSJ.