Boeing is considered a strategically important business to the U.S. - they supply everything from airliners to bombers to spacecraft to cruise missiles. They also create jobs all over the place - taxpayer dollars are funnelled via the pork barrel to jobs programs.
The government cannot allow it to fail, and if Boeing looks bad, the government looks bad. Therefore anyone who makes Boeing look bad is an enemy of the government.
So - you end up with these noncommittal pieces. If they outright said “we are thinking of airbus”, you get the government banning the purchase of airbus aircraft, as that would endanger Boeing, and then you’re stuck with Boeing and the government wants to audit your everything and know why you aren’t standing in line behind the flag.
So the safe option is to make some noncommittal rumblings, and change nothing.