We haven't heard much from White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre recently, probably because with one notable recent exception, the Biden administration hasn't held a press briefing since Joe Biden announced the end of his reelection bid. And even that one exception proved to be more of a stab in the back for Kamala Harris than anything else. Perhaps that's because they've been preparing KJP for her new role. She has now been officially designated as one of Joe Biden's senior advisers. So who will be taking over her old duties as the Press Secretary? Well... it would appear that there won't be anyone taking over. What's the point at this stage of the game? As we'll discuss below, there really isn't much call for anyone to fill in that role and it becomes less and less relevant the closer we get to election day. (ABC News)
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has been promoted to senior adviser to the president, ABC News has learned.
"Karine has been a trusted advisor to the President and all of us here at the White House since day one. Her counsel will be critical to get as much done as possible for the American people in the coming months," said Jeff Zients, the president’s chief of staff.
Jean-Pierre made history in 2022 when she was tapped to become the press secretary, becoming the first Black woman and the first openly gay person to take on the role.
You will note how quickly ABC News moved to note the "historic" natures of KJP's role. She was the first Black woman to hold that post. Not only that, but she was the first openly gay person to take on the job. Just imagine that for a moment if it doesn't leave you too breathless over the awesome nature of that historic appointment. And openly gay lesbian in command of the microphone in the White House press briefings. It's enough to set your heart to fluttering.
But what did she actually do? You're free to cast me as a male chauvenist, a racist, or a homophobe if you like, but she really didn't seem to do all that much. She mostly parroted the White House company line, defending talking points rather than supporting the President's positions with facts, generally not even bothering to promise to "circle back" with answers when she didn't have one at hand.
More to the point, what will she be doing going forward? The White House is saying that they don't need a new Press Secretary because she will maintain her current responsibilities in parallel with her new role as a senior adviser. That role seems hard to justify. Why do you need a Press Secretary when you don't hold any press briefings? More specifically, why assign someone to deal with the press when the press is never invited to ask questions? And what is it that KJP will be advising Joe Biden about? It's not as if he does much beyond making campaign stops to (supposedly) support the new ticket. Joe Biden is basically a ghost at this point, wandering the halls of the White House on the rare occasions he returns there before heading out on yet another of his endless vacation trips.
The most likely explanation is that KJP is playing the revolving door game that is part and parcel of life in the swamp today. She's being lined up for a new position with the Harris presidency if she wins, or with a Beltway consulting firm if she loses. She won''t leave much of a memorable impression on this White House, but did anyone really expect her to? That seems unlikely. Unless and until we learn who it actually is that is running the country at the moment, we're unlikely to obtain any more coherent answers.
