Axios’s Alex Thompson – one of the few establishment media journalists who’s been doing real journalism on the Biden-Harris administration – uncorked a doozy late Monday revealing further tension in the regime’s ranks as sources told him “Biden press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has been blocking national security spokesperson John Kirby from joining her at the podium at White House press briefings.”
Noting the two have long feuded (which he’s covered before), Thompson noted “Kirby has been mostly absent” from briefings even as Middle East tensions have continued to rachet up and his entire job is, in essence, to serve as the regime spokesman on foreign policy matters.
Thompson even brought the statistics to back this up and cited “the departure this summer of Anita Dunn, the White House’s top communications aide” as the point of divergence. Of the briefings since she left July 30, Kirby has only been there 15 percent of the time versus 55 percent in the 2024 briefings prior.
The White House unsurprisingly trotted out regime keyboard warrior Andrew Bates to claim there’s no there and had another source (perhaps Bates too, but again…anonymous!) that Kirby fading from view was planned “closer to the election,” but Thompson’s case was damning.
“Since Dunn left, Jean-Pierre has pushed back each time Kirby has suggested appearing at the briefing, a person familiar with the process told Axios,” Thompson said, adding any time they were “at odds,” the two had the White House chief of staff decide for them like they’re kindergartners.
Thompson explained “Jean-Pierre has long privately fumed about Kirby's role” – which one could reasonably translate to she’s jealous of Kirby’s rapport with the room and command of the Biden-Harris regime’s talkers on foreign policy – and felt his “presence gave the impression she needed a chaperone” even though Biden himself was reportedly behind his frequent appearances.
Jean-Pierre even got so frustrated, Thompson revealed, she “vented to” the White House chief of staff, who “previously deferred to Dunn — who helped craft the dual-spokesperson arrangement at the president's direction.”
Between Jean-Pierre’s promotion to senior adviser and Dunn’s departure to a Kamala Harris PAC, Jean-Pierre has felt like she can put the boot to Kirby.
As for Kirby’s misgivings, Thompson reiterated past reporting that he was frustrated at her refusing to let him pick which reporters to call on (even though he would refer to them by the first names, indicating they’re not strangers).
With the Middle East even closer to dangerous new heights, Thompson cited other “current and former White House officials” as having been “frustrated” with Jean-Pierre because they argue “he'd be helpful to have at the podium during this tenuous time in foreign affairs.”
