The fashion magazine ELLE is a routine stop for Democrats getting a glitzy publicity shoot, often wearing expensive fashions while liberal journalists pile on the glamour. Ashley Biden, the only child of Jill and Joe Biden, has been extremely reluctant to grant interviews, but has decided that now is the time to be celebrated as one of the very best Bidens. On the cover, it only says "Ashley Biden Speaks Out."
Kayla Webley Adler wrote up this puff piece:
Ashley Biden Knows Who She Is
The First Daughter is using what she’s learned from her own trauma to help other women heal from theirs.
The only "trauma" that's underlined is what she's heard from children as a social worker. Ashley's stolen diary is briefly discussed, but not what's in it:
A diary of hers, left for safekeeping in a Florida home, was stolen and sold to Project Veritas, an organization known for hidden-camera videos often targeting liberals (two involved have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing). Add to that the obsession with her brother Hunter (perhaps you’ve heard something about his laptop?), and it can be hard to tune it all out. “I think it’s human nature when anybody that you love dearly is attacked—wrong stuff is out there that is just complete BS—it does anger you,” Ashley says.
Her publicist says Ashley’s lawyers won’t let her talk about the diary, as the investigation is ongoing.
Oh yes, everything the liberal media acknowledges is real on Hunter's laptop is still "complete BS." That's how ELLE is more fashion than journalism. One pull quote is
"I like the saying 'the real flex is staying kind, no matter how cruel the world gets.' That's kind of been my mission."
If you know hardly anything about Ashley Biden, well then, her efforts up until now have paid off. But being the First Daughter comes with a certain amount of pressure to use the platform handed to you. Now she’s (reluctantly) ready to tell you who she is https://t.co/mZOVeaXuue
— Kayla Webley Adler (@kaylawebley) March 28, 2023
What followed was a lot of promotional flatulence, like she's the cool auntie:
In adulthood, she’s a devoted aunt. Her nieces Naomi and Finnegan, 29 and 23, call her their “fiercest advocate, protector, and confidant.” When asked to share stories about Ashley, the pair recall how she cried when she met Mary J. Blige, the phase where she prank-called family members, her dance moves, and her “usually endearing” obsession with taking family photos (and “her unique ability to choose the least flattering photo of all of us”).
She's so down to earth with her gal pals:
Her college roommate–turned–best friend, Seema Sadanandan, recalls a time after college when they were in DC during the Obama years, when Ashley’s dad was vice president. There was a party happening at the White House, and “I was like, ‘Ash, we should totally go to this. This is a big deal.’ And she said, ‘But how will we get in?’ ” Seema remembers. “That is the perfect example of what she’s like. She is aware of the privilege, but her inclination isn’t to figure out how to use it. She’s still Ash. She still wakes up and texts her girlfriends positive affirmations.”
Mom and Dad are just the best:
Even though they now live in the White House, she still tries to see her parents once a week and usually talks to both of them about twice a day. “It is not hyperbole when I say my dad is my best friend,” Ashley says. “We talk all the time about everything from personal stuff to criminal justice. I think he trusts my judgment, and he’s always there to be supportive and to listen and to learn.” Her favorite moments are when they are back home together in Delaware. “The White House is wonderful, but it’s also a bubble,” Ashley says. “So I also love seeing them in the house that I grew up in, with Mom just cooking me an egg sandwich.”
At the end it turns back to those meanies trying to hurt Daddy's and Hunter's image:
Toward the end of our conversation, I ask Ashley about mantras she likes. “I like the saying, ‘The real flex is staying kind no matter how cruel the world gets,’ ” she says. “That’s kind of been my mission recently, to stay kind, to stay grounded, no matter how much the world tries to hurt me or my family.”
Meanwhile the captions sell expensive fashions. So the social worker is promoting "Dress by Brandon Maxwell, $3,295" and for casual wear, "Jacket, Altuzarra, $1,995; Denim Trousers, Loro Piana, $1,350."