White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt pointed the finger at former President Joe Biden Thursday for the “hard time” her predecessor, Karine Jean-Pierre, had in the role.
Leavitt, during a sitdown with Turning Point USA CEO Erika Kirk, explained that she is “very grateful” President Trump is so direct and open with his team – in stark contrast to Biden’s lack of accessibility, which she believes made it difficult for Jean-Pierre to carry out her duties as the top White House spokesperson.
“He just lays it on the table,” Leavitt said of what it’s like working with Trump, during the event at George Washington University. “There’s no guessing. There’s no questioning. There’s no spin. It just is what it is with him.
“And so, as his spokeswoman, I’m very grateful for that because I saw my predecessor in this role have a bit of a hard time, I think, and I think it’s because she wasn’t able to communicate with her boss in a very open and transparent way.”
Jean-Pierre, who replaced Jen Psaki as press secretary in 2022 and served in the role until Biden left office, was often criticized for sticking to talking points, seeming unprepared and dispensing little information during her White House briefings.
She was viewed as incompetent by many in the West Wing, including senior Biden aides who attempted unsuccessfully to coax her to leave the White House in late 2023, The Post previously reported.
A staunch defender of Biden, Jean-Pierre announced last year she was no longer a Democrat because of the party’s treatment of her former boss.
She acknowledged during testimony before the House Oversight Committee last year that talking points were given to her by “various advisers … relating to President Biden’s health and mental acuity.”
Biden, who rarely gave interviews or took questions from the press, was reportedly shielded by a small, tight-knit group of advisers at the White House dubbed the “politburo,” according to the bombshell book “Original Sin.”
In contrast, Trump regularly takes questions – and even answers spontaneous phone calls – from reporters.
“The president’s accessibility and transparency — not just to me and the rest of the West Wing staff — but to you, the American people, and the news media, is so refreshing,” Leavitt argued.
“Everything he says is exactly how he feels,” she added. “There’s no guessing, and he’s honest and authentic about what he believes, and it makes my job much easier.
“That’s one of the things I love most about the job.”
