White House says Biden will fix Inflation Reduction Act 'glitches,' address Europe’s concerns without Congress

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on Monday suggested that President Biden will fix "glitches" in the Inflation Reduction Act to assuage European concerns without going to Congress. 

The comments came in response to a reporter who asked whether President Biden planned to issue any executive orders to tweak the IRA in response to criticism of the legislation from French officials over the weekend. 

Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration was working through a "substantive consultation with Europe" to fix "glitches" and address their concerns, reiterating comments she made last week.  

"We don’t have plans to go back to Congress on that. But when it comes to [Europe’s] concerns, of course, we’re going to have conversations with our European allies," Jean-Pierre said. 

Foreign officials have accused the IRA, passed in August, of being "protectionist." French President Emmanuel Macron, who dined with Biden during a state visit last week, has complained that subsidies meant to incentivize semiconductor production for electric vehicles have put European leaders at an unfair disadvantage.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Macron, Biden acknowledged the $368 billion spending and tax law may have "glitches" but overall defended what the White House views as a signature achievement of his administration. 

"Look, the United States makes no apology and I make no apology, since I wrote it, for the legislation you're talking about," Biden said in response to a reporter's question about the complaints. 

"But there are occasions when you write a massive piece of legislation – and that has almost $368 billion for the largest investment in climate change in all of history – and so there's obviously going to be glitches in it."