A former press secretary of Jill Biden, the wife of former US President Joe Biden, has criticised their administration and the work environment they forged during their time at the White House.
Michael LaRosa, who served as Jill Biden's spokesperson from early 2021 until mid-2022, said the "Biden Bubble" was characterised by loyalty policing, bullying, and cliques-actions that contradicted the former President's public discourse on empathy and decency.
In an op-ed for Fox News, he complained that the Biden administration "was full of bullies"
According to Mr LaRosa, the job was more like a high school "mean girls" drama than it was about serving the public. He claimed that the internal power structures changed based on the courtiers. Employees were supposedly serving a cult-like system where devotion to the president and first lady was more important than performance or honesty.
"Inside the White House, the Regina Georges of Biden's circle controlled like mean girls and enforced loyalty," Mr LaRosa said, referring to actress Rachael McAdams' vicious character in the popular film 'Mean Girls.'
Joe Biden and Jill Biden were "warm, decent, empathetic" people, yet they inadvertently permitted "some of the nastiest and most mean-spirited people I've ever encountered in politics" to work inside their sphere of influence, he said.
He emphasised that his observations correspond with the statements made in former Vice President Kamala Harris's upcoming memoir, '107 Days,' which is slated to be published on Tuesday, The New York Post reported.
According to excerpts, Harris portrays a White House staff that was uncomfortable with her apparent success and allegedly undermined her and fuelled unfavourable rumours, particularly while her profile was growing.
Although Mr LaRosa does not specifically name the people involved in the alleged behaviour, he does identify Anthony Bernal, Jill Biden's chief of staff, as a person who many in the White House believed to be both powerful and controversial.
Often referred to as Jill Biden's "work husband," Bernal was regarded as one of the most influential first lady chiefs of staff in US history. He was a misery to work with and a bully, according to numerous employees.
Mr LaRosa claimed he was informed that Joe Biden "has to run because she [Harris] can't." He further encouraged Harris to keep speaking up with "unfiltered candour about her experience" that could help bridge the gap between impression and truth.
