White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby was apologetic when asked about the perception he is undermining press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre behind the briefing podium.
“If anyone gets any kind of idea in their head that I’m taking away from Karine or her work, that’s really regrettable,” Kirby said Friday. “I’m very sorry that that’s any impression that anybody would have.”
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Kirby, the former State and Defense Department spokesman, stressed that he is “simply” at the National Security Council to coordinate national security communications. The retired rear admiral added he joined Jean-Pierre in the briefing room “every now and then” and “with her good graces.”
“That’s my portfolio. That’s where I’m limited. That’s where I’ll stay, and I do it at her invitation and with her approval,” he said. “That’s the focus. I’m happy to answer national security questions, and that’s about it.”
Kirby moved to the White House from the Pentagon as part of a communications shop staff shuffle after former White House press secretary Jen Psaki’s departure in May.
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Jean-Pierre, an experienced political communicator, has routinely brought subject matter experts with her to brief reporters, from Cabinet secretaries to top administration officials. Republicans have seized on the pattern, describing Kirby as Jean-Pierre’s “co-press secretary.”
Reporter: China is buying up land near U.S. military bases. Is this on the administration’s radar?
Co-Press Secretary John Kirby: That’s “a little out of my swim lane.”
Reporter: “This is a national security issue.”
Kirby: “I’m not the right person to ask about this.” pic.twitter.com/UjJqcPFtQ8
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) September 13, 2022
