From her early morning routine to her last briefing, this piece chronicles Karine Jean-Pierre's final day as White House Press Secretary. It highlights her dedication to the job, her reflections on her time in the role, and her personal connections to the events and individuals she encountered.
Karine Jean-Pierre 's last day in the press briefing room began, as usual, at 4:30 a.m. 'I work out, meditate, read and watch the news before I jump in a car to the White House. At 7:30am I lead a daily call with my team, previewing the news of the day. It’s a time to get my team on the same page and talk about what our briefing will look like. It is also an opportunity to make sure we are ready for whatever the president has planned,' she says.
'Normally, this call is a meeting in person with the White House Chief of Staff’s office,' Jean-Pierre says. 'But today I’m at Rev. Al Sharpton’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day Birthday Breakfast, so I found a quiet space to take the call in this ballroom. Every day looks different because of the demands of our travel and event schedule, but this daily meeting is an important way to ensure senior advisors are aligned on issues important to the president and the American people.' 'Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Luther King III welcomed me to the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Birthday Breakfast at the Mayflower Hotel,' Jean-Pierre says. The breakfast is an annual event Jean-Pierre has attended for years. 'It is not often that you have this many powerful, diverse leaders in one room. In 2020, I attended this same event and received the Martin Luther King Jr. Visionary award. President Bill Clinton was a fellow honoree.' Jean-Pierre is a single parent to a ten-year-old daughter, Soleil. 'Today, I took down one of the last items in my office — a note from my then-7-year-old congratulating me on my first press gaggle aboard Air Force One when I was Principal Deputy Press Secretary. This is a reminder of why I am here and why I do what I do,' she says. 'It has been an honor to serve as White House Press Secretary, but my favorite title will always be ‘Mama.’ The West Colonade, connecting the West Wing and the Executive Residence, is known as the president’s 45-second commute. 'This is one of my favorite walks in the White House. It still gives me chills. It reminds me of the power of this place,' Jean-Pierre says. 'We were heading to the Residence to prep President Biden for his farewell Oval Office address, but the meeting quickly evolved into prep for remarks on breaking news in the Middle East.' 'I’ve been in the trenches with Jen Psaki since day one,' Jean-Pierre says. 'We still maintain a close friendship. She even moved her schedule around and flew cross country to be here for my final briefing. A full circle moment, since I was there for her first and last briefings. Together, under this Administration, we have held 537 briefings from the White House Press Briefing Room.' Jean-Pierre watches as President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the cease-fire and hostage deal reached by Israel and Hamas. 'This moment is one I will never forget,' she says. 'I felt a deep sense of pride for President Biden and what he was able to achieve.' After Biden’s televised remarks, Jean-Pierre addressed the press corps. 'Walking out to the podium is an amazing adrenaline that I looked forward to for every briefing,' she says. 'Right before I go out, I huddle with my team, listen to some music, and take a deep breath. There is nothing like seeing those doors slide open. You see it all — cameras, screens, and a crowded room of reporters.' A new lectern was installed during Jean-Pierre’s tenure as press secretary. 'I had the opportunity to name it after the first two black women in White House Press Corps: Alice Dunnigan and Ethel L. Payne,' she says. 'This is the best team in the business,' Jean-Pierre says. After that last appearance at the podium, she says, 'I gathered current and former press staff in my office to toast to our four years in the White House. I wouldn’t be able to do this job without the staff who support me and the President every day.' 'This is my last television interview as Press Secretary with MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace,' Jean-Pierre says. She did the TV hit from one of the news tents erected on the North Lawn of the White House, an area known colloquially as ‘Pebble Beach.’ She says, 'Wallace served in the White House herself; she gets it. This interview gave me another opportunity to uplift our work and reflect on my last press briefing.' 'The Press Briefing Room is built over FDR’s former swimming pool,' Jean-Pierre explains. 'I took part in a decades-long tradition of signing the tiles in the deep end, just beneath the podium where I have spent over 500 hours briefing the press corps.' A drawing of Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson signed by the artist, Lalo Alcaraz, hung in Jean-Pierre’s office. 'This was a special moment for me as the first black, female press secretary taking down a photo of the first black, female supreme court justice,' she says. 'I first saw this poster on an overseas trip to Spain. The U.S. Ambassador to Spain Julissa Reynoso actually gifted it to me. In my office, I placed this right in my line of sight so I could read the words ‘persevere.
Karine Jean-Pierre White House Press Secretary Farewell Briefing Joe Biden Press Corps Martin Luther King Jr. Day Alice Dunnigan Ethel L. Payne
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