Karine Jean-Pierre’s top 2023 tussles with White House reporters

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre may not be known for snarky quips like her predecessor, MSNBC host Jen Psaki, who would drop “Psaki bombs” on unsuspecting reporters during her time at the lectern.

Jean-Pierre tends to display a more genial personality and often splits her briefings with various administration guests. Still, she is known to have a flare-up from time to time, especially when egged on by the press corps‘s more combative reporters.

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December marks the end of Jean-Pierre’s first full year serving as press secretary, giving a fuller picture of her work in comparison to the partial year of 2022 in which she frequently cited the Hatch Act to avoid answering questions.

Here are the press secretary’s top press briefing showdowns of 2023.

“We can just end the briefing right here”

Jean-Pierre’s top antagonist by some distance is the enigmatic Simon Ateba, of Today News Africa. While some question Ateba’s bona fides as a reporter — he appears to be a one-man show at his outlet — Ateba makes his own headlines by shouting in the White House briefing room.

Things got awkward in March when Ateba began yelling while the cast of Ted Lasso visited the proceedings.

“We’re not doing this,” the press secretary pleaded as the cast awkwardly looked on, and she later threatened to “end the briefing right here” once the crew of actors left.

But Ateba got his shot of fame off of the encounter, including a segment on The View dedicated to his antics.

“We can end this briefing” Part 2

Jean-Pierre made good on her threat eight months later, ending a briefing on the spot when Ateba got cranked up again.

“All right, we can end this briefing if it’s not going to be respectful,” Jean-Pierre said in response to Ateba. “All right, thank you so much,” she added as she ushered National Security Council spokesman John Kirby away from the podium.

Ateba remains a fixture of the James S. Brady press briefing room, though he has remained mostly quiet in the weeks since Jean-Pierre stormed out.

“It’s not up to you how I answer the question”

Ateba is not Jean-Pierre’s only antagonist, of course. She also clashes on occasion with other reporters, including New York Post correspondent Steven Nelson, formerly of the Washington Examiner.

Nelson was part of a slew of reporters asking questions after text messages emerged in which Hunter Biden told an associate he was “sitting here with my father” wondering “why the commitment made has not been fulfilled.”

After many others asked what the texts meant, Nelson tried to pin Jean-Pierre down by saying, “Was the president involved? … Yes or no. Was the president involved?”

She did not elaborate.

“I just answered the question,” Jean-Pierre said. “It’s not up to you how I answer the question. I just answered the question by telling you my colleague at the White House counsel has dealt with this, and I would refer you to them.”

“And I’m not calling on you today”

Nelson noticed later in the year that he had not been called on in a while, a topic he raised directly during an Oct. 11 briefing.

“You haven’t called on me in two seasons, Karine,” Nelson said.

The streak continued.

“And I’m not calling on you today,” Jean-Pierre quipped as she pointed to another reporter. “Go ahead.”

“I tried to answer the question, you stopped me”

Jean-Pierre snubbed another question on Sept. 21, when she took umbrage at Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy for interrupting her.

Doocy asked what the White House calls 10,000 illegal border crossers in a single day, and Jean-Pierre tried to turn the question around by asking “What do you call it when the GOP puts forth a —” before Doocy interjected.

Chaos ensued.

“That is your opinion”

Jean-Pierre clashed with Gray Television reporter Jon Decker back in January, when Decker kept pressing for information on the classified documents scandal.

“It’s not your decision to make on what I can and can’t answer,” Jean-Pierre said when he complained of an “information blackout.” She later added, “I already answered your question,” and when he shot back, “you really didn’t,” Jean-Pierre said, “That is your opinion.”

She then called on someone else.

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Unsurprisingly, many Republicans have decided they are not fans of Jean-Pierre’s work supporting President Joe Biden, including Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY), who pushed to lower her salary to $1 a year.

That effort failed, with 54 GOPers voting against it. Jean-Pierre will continue to earn the White House maximum salary of $180,000 in 2024.