Infighting and “tension” reportedly rage between White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and the National Security Council’s John Kirby about how much time each is allotted to provide the establishment media with canned public relations remarks during press briefings.
The two team members are forced to work together because President Joe Biden “likes it,” Axios reported Friday:
- Kirby is a “Biden favorite” with experience in foreign policy.
- Kirby appears to covet Jean-Pierre’s job but does not make overt attempts to replace her.
- Jean-Pierre refuses to leave her post and plans to remain in the position “through the election.”
- The infighting increased after the terror attacks against Israel on October 7, when Kirby took a greater role.
A large point of contention between the two staffers is about who calls on reporters to ask questions. “Jean-Pierre still runs the press briefings and selects which reporters ask Kirby questions, rather than letting him choose,” Axios reported:
- Kirby reportedly “expressed frustration” Jean-Pierre chose the reporters.
- Some White House aides told Axios Jean-Pierre’s control is because she is “being insecure.”
- While Jean-Pierre controls Kirby’s time, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan is not restrained by Jean-Pierre during his briefings.
“Jean-Pierre’s defenders say the arrangement undermined her from the beginning and made a difficult job harder. Some Black Democrats in the administration and on Capitol Hill say the situation was insulting because it suggested that the first Black press secretary to represent the president needed supervision,” Axios reported.
“Ron Klain, then the White House chief of staff, met with Jean-Pierre to try to smooth things over and reassure her that she was the press secretary,” the outlet reported. “He and Dunn then worked to find an agreeable arrangement. (Klain did not respond to a request for comment.)”
When Biden gave the job to Jean-Pierre in 2022, he told her Kirby would join her on the team, Axios reported. That apparently enraged Jean-Pierre, who left the meeting with Biden “upset and confused.”
Follow Wendell Husebø on “X” @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.