Could the real White House spokesperson please stand up?
Biden’s press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Council spokesman John Kirby are reportedly at odds behind the scenes over how they are divvying up responsibilities for their regular media briefings.
Kirby, a former top Pentagon and State Department spokesman, has made increasingly frequent appearances at the podium since the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, and is a favorite of the president, who often asks him Kirby to inform him personally, according to Axios.
Despite his prominence as the administration’s de facto foreign policy spokesperson, Kirby’s appearances in the briefing room are strictly controlled by Jean-Pierre, who selects which reporters can ask Kirby questions.
Notably, the press secretary does no such thing when Kirby’s nominal boss, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, attends briefings, leading Kirby to express his frustration with the situation.
The increasingly prominent role of the National Security Council’s John Kirby in White House news conferences in recent months is said to have led to growing tensions behind the podium. fake images
“It’s not my briefing room,” Kirby, a 60-year-old retired Navy rear admiral, recently complained to a person who asked if he enjoyed his position in the White House, sources told The Post.
The awkwardness dates back to Jen Psaki’s departure as White House press secretary in May 2022, two weeks before Kirby left the Pentagon.
President Biden formally offered Jean-Pierre the role of Psaki’s successor, but muddied the waters by adding that she would work with Kirby, Jean-Pierre told colleagues at the time, according to Axios.
Since then, some black members of the administration have suggested to the media that the agreement was insulting to Jean-Pierre because it meant the first African-American press secretary needed oversight.
Kirby has been at the center of White House press briefings since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel. AFP via Getty Images
Meanwhile, Kirby has reportedly told people that he would like to be press secretary one day, although a person familiar with the situation told The Post on Friday that he had never offered that ambition.
Jean-Pierre, for his part, has said he intends to remain in his position at least until this year’s election and says Biden has asked him not to leave.
In a sign of Kirby’s rising star, he has begun accompanying the president aboard Air Force One on domestic trips and international visits, reportedly at the request of White House senior adviser Anita Dunn.
The pair only clashed over the deal once, in September 2022, when Kirby steadfastly ignored questions from Today News Africa reporter and occasional boardroom gadfly Simon Ateba about whether he was a “second press secretary” who was effectively doing the same job. like Jean-Pierre.
“If someone gets any kind of idea into their head that [I’m] taking away Karine or her job, that’s really unfortunate. And I’m very sorry that that’s the impression anyone might get,” Kirby said at the time.
“I can come here from time to time to talk to you about national security issues. That’s my portfolio. That’s where I’m limited. “That’s where I’ll stay,” he added, noting that his appearances in the meeting room were preceded by invitations and Jean-Pierre’s approval.
Karine Jean-Pierre speaks during a press conference at the White House in January. AP
Ateba has not been asked to ask any questions since then.
Since the outbreak of war in the Middle East, Kirby has been at Jean-Pierre’s side at more than 30 press conferences, with the press secretary making only one individual appearance during that time.
Complicating matters is Jean-Pierre’s history of unnecessarily creating headaches for the White House.
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In June, the Office of Special Counsel determined that Jean-Pierre’s repeated use of the term “MAGA mega Republicans” in the run-up to the 2022 midterm elections constituted a violation of the Hatch Act, which restricts Federal employees engage in political activities that could influence an election.
However, the agency declined to take further action, saying only that White House lawyers disagreed that his comments were prohibited by law.
Jean-Pierre also received harsh criticism during a press conference on October 23 when he responded to a question about the rise of anti-Semitism in the United States, stating that the White House had seen “no credible threat” against the Jewish community before passing to talk about hate crimes against Muslims and Arab Americans.
Jean-Pierre later told Fox News Digital that he had misheard the question before unequivocally condemning the “repulsive rise of anti-Semitic rhetoric, conspiracy theories and hate crimes in our nation,” which he called “ a growing threat.”
A White House official who works closely with Jean-Pierre and Kirby told The Post that they have seen no signs of a rift between the two.
“As someone who spends more time ‘behind closed doors’ with both of them than with anyone else, I don’t recognize this description of their relationship at all,” the official said. “The truth is the opposite: they talk all the time and have a collegial, collaborative relationship.”
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