Ex-spokesman alleges 'cult' of 'mean girls' ruled White House as Harris memoir reveals tensions

WASHINGTON — Jill Biden’s former spokesman described a White House culture he called a 'cult' of 'mean girls' that shielded the Bidens and left the 'Biden Bubble' full of bullies, according to a blistering Fox News op-ed Monday. Michael LaRosa wrote that inside the White House, 'the Regina Georges of Biden’s circle ruled like mean girls and policed loyalty,' a characterization aimed at the internal dynamic surrounding the first lady and president. He said staff were more focused on loyalty tests than public service, and that the Bidens were surrounded by people who wielded power rather than served the presidency.

LaRosa’s account surfaces as Vice President Kamala Harris’s upcoming memoir, 107 Days, draws attention to friction between her office and Biden aides. Excerpts released ahead of publication describe a White House atmosphere in which narratives about Harris were shaped by insiders and sometimes amplified by the president’s own team. Harris’s preview, reported in The Atlantic, quotes her asserting that the White House staff helped fuel negative narratives about her, contributing to perceptions of a chaotic office and unusually high staff turnover. She argues that the drive to present a united front was sometimes undermined by internal rivalries and a zero-sum mindset: if she shone, the president appeared dimmed. Harris wrote that her visibility was intended to reflect well on President Biden’s judgment and to reassure the country about leadership in challenging times.

LaRosa, who worked on the 2020 Biden campaign and later served as Jill Biden’s spokesman from early 2021 through July 2022, said the environment was contradictory: 'Joe and Jill Biden were warm, decent, empathetic,' he recalled, but they enabled some of the nastiest and most mean-spirited people he encountered in politics. He noted that Anthony Bernal, who led Jill Biden’s staff in the latter part of his tenure, was widely seen as one of the most powerful chiefs of staff to a first lady and was accused by several staffers of bullying. The Post previously reported on Bernal’s aggressive management style, an allegation that once again surfaces in discussions around the Biden era.

Harris’s memoir, according to the published excerpts, depicts a clash over personnel and messaging that extended beyond individual grievances. The Atlantic preview quotes Harris saying, 'I often learned that the president’s staff was adding fuel to negative narratives that sprang up around me.' She describes a 'chaotic' atmosphere and notes that staff turnover during her first year was unusually high. Harris writes that her outcomes were framed as critical to showing that the administration trusted her leadership, given concerns about the president’s age and the country’s needs. 'None of them grasped that if I did well, he did well. That given the concerns about his age, my visible success as his vice president was vital,' she writes.

Following the excerpt release, several of Harris’s former colleagues privately criticized her in various outlets, while Harris had previously refrained from publicly criticizing Biden until her book’s release. Harris recounts a phone call from Biden just before a September debate with Donald Trump, in which he raised concerns about rumors that she was speaking ill of him. Semafor sources who recounted the moment quoted Harris as saying that despite the lack of White House support at times, she felt loyalty to the president and believed she owed it to the country to press forward.

LaRosa’s remarks add to a broader conversation about workplace culture within the Biden administration, a conversation that has persisted since the 2020 campaign and intensified as Harris’s memoir draws attention to internal tensions. The book, set for release Tuesday, arrives amid ongoing scrutiny of how personnel decisions and public narratives shaped the administration’s public-facing image. The White House has not publicly responded to LaRosa’s op-ed in the outlets that carried his column, and officials have historically emphasized a commitment to professional conduct and accountability while acknowledging that disagreements are part of any large political operation.

The discourse surrounding Harris’s book and LaRosa’s account underscores how internal dynamics—ranging from loyalty tests to public messaging—continue to color public perceptions of the Biden years. As Harris’s memoir enters the public domain, critics and supporters alike will reassess the extent to which internal culture influenced policy and communication with the American people. The conversation also reflects a broader pattern in politics: high-profile administrations often contend with the tension between strong leadership and the personalities of those tasked with implementing it, a tension that can shape the narrative about a presidency long after its terms.