White House minimizes President Biden’s ‘Armageddon’ remarks, says nuclear war not imminent

The White House is currently on a mission to tamp down fears of nuclear war after President Joe Biden invoked the word ‘Armageddon’ during a recent speech.

Speaking at a DNC fundraiser last week, President Biden remarked to the audience, “We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.”

He went on to say he knows Putin “fairly well,” and “he’s not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons because his military is, you might say, significantly underperforming.”

The comments raised eyebrows as members of the press and the public began to wonder if the president had some insider intel that might suggest an impending nuclear attack.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre sought to mitigate the panic, telling reporters aboard Air Force One that the president was simply seeking to warn Russian President Putin that his choice of words regarding nuclear weapons was inappropriate. 

“We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture, nor do we have indications that Russia is preparing to imminently use nuclear weapons,” Jean-Pierre said.

She added, “The kind of irresponsible rhetoric we have seen is no way for the leader of a nuclear-armed state to speak.”

Fears of a Kremlin-authorized nuclear attack have been heightened since Putin delivered comments last month warning, “The citizens of Russia can rest assured that the territorial integrity of our Motherland, our independence and freedom will be defended—I repeat—by all the systems available to us,” he said. “Those who are using nuclear blackmail against us should know that the wind rose can turn around.”