She was one of Joe Biden's most loyal defenders during his presidency - but now Karine Jean-Pierre is singing a different tune as she tries to cash in on her White House tenure.
With her book Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines, Jean-Pierre is recasting herself as a free-thinker, despite her role in helping to cover up Biden's cognitive decline. Adding insult to injury, she is leaving the Democratic party.
The ex-press secretary's treacherous about-face has emboldened former insiders to speak bluntly about her qualifications, with some calling her incompetent and a burden on her colleagues.
During her time on the podium, Jean-Pierre became known for her clumsy delivery and overreliance on notes. She was the second person to serve as Biden's chief White House spokesman, taking over the role from Jen Psaki in 2022.
As questions mounted about Biden's cognitive health, Jean-Pierre vouched for his fitness - calling him "sharp as ever" after his infamous debate meltdown, which led to the unraveling of his re-election bid and presidency.
"Until January 20, I was responsible for speaking on behalf of the President of the United States," Jean-Pierre said in a statement on Wednesday.
"At noon on that day, I became a private citizen who, like all Americans and many of our allies around the world, had to contend with what was to come next for our country."
Her effort to recast her White House role as a passive observer has infuriated former colleagues, who accuse her of a cynical cash grab.
"The hubris of thinking you can position yourself as an outsider when you not only have enjoyed the perks of extreme proximity to power — which ... bestows the name recognition needed to sell books off your name — but have actively wielded it from the biggest pulpit there is, is as breathtaking as it is desperate ... It's difficult to see how this is anything but a bizarre cash grab," a former Biden communications official told Axios.
Her brazen new venture has also emboldened former colleagues to speak bluntly about the way she was "coddled" inside the White House.
As one official said, "The amount of time that was spent coddling [Jean-Pierre] and appeasing her was astronomical compared to our attention on actual matters of substance."
Her critics also say she is making a mistake by severing ties with the Democrats, given her reliance on the party for career advancement.
"Today Karine lost the only constituency that ever supported her — party line Democrats," one official said.
