President Joe Biden is staying in-house to replace departing Press Secretary Jenn Psaki.
Karine Jean-Pierre, currently principal deputy press secretary and assistant to the president, will be the new chief White House spokesperson. Psaki will leave May 13, according to the White House and is expected to join MSNBC.
“Karine not only brings the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job, but she will continue to lead the way in communicating about the work of the Biden-Harris Administration on behalf of the American people,” Biden said. He also thanked Psaki, saying she set the standard for “returning decency, respect and decorum to the White House Briefing Room,” a not-too-veiled reference to the contentious tenure of a series of press secretaries to President Donald Trump, which included pulling the plug on daily briefings altogether.
Jean-Pierre’s resume also includes chief public affairs officer for liberal group MoveOn.org and analyst for MSNBC and NBC. She will reportedly be the first African-American and openly LGBTQ press secretary.
In a related move, Anita Dunn, who had been a senior adviser to the president on communications and legislative strategy, will return in that post.
She is a partner and founding member of Democrat-focused communications firm SKDK, whose messaging includes work on social justice and vaccines, as well as helping elect Democrats to public office. ▪️
