During a recent press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre faced tough questioning from reporters over President Joe Biden’s decision to skip holding a press conference during an upcoming meeting with world leaders.

Set to attend the “Quad” summit at his Delaware home, Biden is meeting with leaders from Australia, India, and Japan, but apparently won’t take questions from the press, as reported by the Daily Caller.

CBS News correspondent Ed O’Keefe got straight to the point, asking Jean-Pierre why Biden would not allow reporters into these important bilateral meetings. His question comes amid claims that Biden is one of the most transparent presidents in history.

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In response, Jean-Pierre dodged the question and instead highlighted the president’s focus on hosting a more “personal” event. She claimed Biden wanted to “do something he hadn’t done before” by bringing world leaders to his hometown and noted that there would be other opportunities for the press to cover the event.

“It was important to him to have these personal touches,” Jean-Pierre said, emphasizing the importance of Biden’s choice to host in his home city. She assured the press that they would not be excluded entirely, noting a “Quad family photo,” a visit to Biden’s high school, and an announcement about Cancer Moonshot. But none of this satisfied the press corps.

Newsmax White House correspondent James Rosen cut in, clearly frustrated with the lack of substantive answers. “They’re called photo ops. That’s what you’ve created,” Rosen said bluntly. “They’re not a press conference, which we would prefer.”

O’Keefe followed up by pressing the issue further. He pointed out the hypocrisy in Biden’s self-portrayal as the most transparent president while avoiding reporters.

“It baffles people in this room… this is a president who from day one committed to being the most transparent president possible,” O’Keefe stated. He added that Biden missed a golden opportunity to demonstrate that commitment by taking questions while standing alongside leaders from India, Australia, and Japan—democracies that are critical to global stability.

As the back-and-forth grew tense, Jean-Pierre snapped at Rosen for interrupting her conversation with O’Keefe, firmly telling him, “Excuse me, I’m not speaking to you.” However, her attempts to downplay the press concerns did little to quell their frustrations.

The press secretary argued that it’s “not unusual” for a president to forego a press conference when hosting world leaders. But the reporters weren’t buying it. Rosen’s quip about “photo ops” versus real press access hit a nerve, highlighting the ongoing frustrations about the administration’s selective transparency.

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