Former White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will release a book titled Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines on Oct. 21, detailing her time in the Biden White House. The American Spectator has obtained an exclusive excerpt.
“You’re gonna make history, kid,” President Biden told me on May 16, 2022, when I became the first African-American immigrant lesbian with curly hair to serve as White House press secretary.
“Thank you, Mr. President. I am a truly historic figure. Just ask me,” I modestly replied.
“I knew you would make a great vice president when I picked you based on merit and not race or gender.” “I’m not Kamala Harris,” I told a president who was on top of his intellectual and physical game.
“I also enjoy your CNN show, but why do you wear a suit and have a lower voice and shorter hair from 10 p.m. to midnight?” he said.
“I’m not Don Lemon, either,” I replied.
Unable to keep up with him running mental rings around me, I knew we had to get down to the day’s business. “Mr. President. We have a jam-packed schedule,” I said. “I have a Vogue photo shoot at noon, a Vanity Fair sit-down at 1 p.m., and The New York Times wants to interview me about my history-making debut at 2 p.m.”
“Can I go with you?”
“No, Mr. President. You have a schedule to keep, too. The Columbo marathon starts at 9 a.m. on TBS, and your morning tapioca pudding cup arrives at 10 a.m. (CNN personality) Jake Tapper gives you a sponge bath at 11 a.m. You nap from noon to 6 p.m., and then it’s bedtime.”
“Oh.” The president stared out of the Oval Office, steeped in reflection, or at least he would have been had a window existed before him and not a bare spot on the wall. “Anyway.”
“Mr. President, my publicist, Gilda Squire, will escort you to a safe place where you won’t have to say or do anything.” I gave my boss a helpful nudge so he could shuffle off with Gilda, and I could go about my day battling misinformation and speaking truth to the nation based on whatever it said in my binder.
A press secretary’s job is to convince the American people that they don’t see what is clearly in front of their faces. Take the millions of migrants who strolled across the southern border during the Biden-Harris administration.
“We agree that the border is secure, but there is still more work to be done,” I said at the time. Videos of migrant caravans swamping the Texas border? Cheap fakes. (I can’t believe the media bought our cheap fake narrative. Actually, I can.)
Following the president’s June 27, 2024, presidential debate hiccup, I blamed, in part, jet lag for his poor performance, even though the plane had landed a week earlier.
“He’s as sharp as ever,” I told Real Clear Politics reporter Philip Wegmann in response to his ridiculous question about the president slowing down. Everyone knew that behind closed doors, President Biden balanced spinning plates on a stick on his nose while riding a unicycle around the Resolute Desk. I could barely keep up with him!
Press secretaries must have a solid grip on the facts, and I demonstrated this when a suspected Chinese spy balloon drifted over North America in early 2023. Impartial journalist Jonathan Capehart asked me why a U.S. fighter jet shot it down over our neighbors to the north.
“Because it’s part of, uh, NORAD,” I replied. “There’s — uh — the NORAD is part of like a — part of — It’s a, it’s a, what you call a coalition — a consortium. A pact.… We did it clearly in step with Canadia.”
Such brilliance can inform the public and potentially land you a job on The View, where I would be the most intelligent panelist should ABC hire me when my star shines bright enough. And for the record, I disagree with those who say being the smartest co-host on The View is like being the hunchback with the best posture.
Naturally, my historic success drew some detractors, including former Biden official Tim Wu, who posted (and later deleted) on X: “From WH policy staff perspective, the real problem with Karine Jean-Pierre was that she was kinda dumb. No interest in understanding harder topics. Just gave random, incoherent answers on policy.”
Hatred of marginalized groups leads people to say hurtful things, including one former Biden official telling Politico, “Everyone thinks this is a grift,” regarding this book serving as a shameless cash grab by an unqualified, self-promoting political hack. I’m an Independent now, there’s nothing political or egotistical about me. And if you believe that, I’ve got a book to sell you.
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