Watch live: White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre gives press briefing

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will speak with reporters Friday afternoon, closing out a week that’s seen Biden unexpectedly side with a majority-Republican House measure regarding criminal justice in the District of Columbia.

As The Hill reported Thursday, the resolution, passed in early February, would block a Washington, D.C., city council action, popular with city residents, to remove most mandatory sentencing, reduce penalties for some violent crimes, such as robberies, and expand the scope of misdemeanor offenses guaranteed the right to a jury trial. Biden’s statement that he plans to sign the House bill aligns him with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D), who opposed the city council on the issue. The bill is expected to pass in the Senate due to support from Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Bob Casey (D-Penn.).

On Thursday, Jean-Pierre repeatedly fielded questions about the president’s stance, which he had just posted in a tweet. The press secretary sought to resolve what appeared to be a break with Biden’s history of support for District of Columbia home-rule and statehood. Her argument was that there’s a significant difference between violent crime and other issues, and she maintained Biden’s policy in favor of self-determination for D.C. was unchanged.

Meanwhile, Biden has said he will veto an unrelated resolution that passed in the Senate this week. That bill would have reversed a rule the Labor Department enacted in November allowing retirement fund managers to look at a company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) profile when considering its inclusion in an investment portfolio. The veto will be Biden’s first.

Today President Biden is meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who has been a key partner for the U.S. in support of Ukraine’s defense against a Russian assault as it enters its second year.

The press briefing is scheduled to begin at 12:45 p.m. ET.

Watch the live video above.