Biden's press secretary ditches Democrats

Karine Jean-Pierre, who served as White House press secretary under President Joe Biden, said she’s left the Democratic Party and is now an independent.

Ms. Jean-Pierre, whose tenure at the briefing room podium was marked by frequent sparring with reporters over Mr. Biden’s cognitive decline and his administration’s left-wing policies, said she’s now part of “the growing fractured electorate that is independent,” according to a new book she’s writing. 

Ms. Jean-Pierre’s “revelatory assessment of America’s broken two-party system” goes on sale in October, according to her publisher, Hatchette Book Group. 

Her book, titled “Independent: A Look Inside a Broken White House, Outside the Party Lines,” assails “blind loyalty” to the Democrats and Republicans and advocates for political independence.

“Jean-Pierre didn’t come to her decision to be an Independent lightly,” a short preview of the book reveals. “She takes us through the three weeks that led to Biden’s abandoning his bid for a second term and the betrayal by the Democratic Party that led to his decision.”

Ms. Jean-Pierre is a longtime Democratic operative. She worked in the Obama administration and served as a senior adviser in Mr. Biden’s 2020 campaign. She later was Vice President Kamala Harris’ chief of staff and was promoted to White House press secretary in 2022. Her ascension to the post was heralded as historic. She was the first openly gay person in the role. 

Ms. Jean-Pierre has kept quiet since Mr. Biden left office in January.

Mr. Biden quit the presidential race in July after top party leaders pressured him to step aside due to low poll numbers and evidence of cognitive decline. Ms. Jean-Pierre remained a staunch defender of his mental acuity during that time. 

Her publisher describes the book as a “hard-hitting, yet hopeful critique” that describes the value of becoming an independent. “She urges Americans to think outside the blue-and-red box as we consider what’s next to save our democracy.”