Powerful White House official — and Jill Biden’s ‘work husband’ — is a #MeToo nightmare with claims of bullying, sexual harassment
https://nypost.com/2024/03/12/us-news/powerful-white-house-official-anthony-bernal-jill-bidens-work-husband-is-a-metoo-nightmare-with-claims-of-bullying-sexual-harassment/WASHINGTON — A top Biden White House official has bullied and verbally sexually harassed colleagues over more than a decade, The Post has learned — but is considered “untouchable” because first lady Jill Biden regards him as her “work husband.”
Anthony Bernal, whose status as the first lady’s top aide grants him enormous clout in both White House operations and Democratic politics, has repeatedly speculated in the workplace about the penis size of colleagues, according to three sources with firsthand knowledge.
Two sources said Bernal, 50, shared with them a theory that the size of a person’s thumb corresponds to that of their genitalia — citing the hypothesis both at the White House and in prior roles during President Biden’s campaign and vice presidency under President Barack Obama.
“It is to make people uncomfortable and to have power over them,” said one source who told The Post they heard Bernal make the crude remarks over several years while they worked together.
“It is Me Too — classic Me Too,” the source added.
A second source recounted hearing Bernal speculate “often” inside the White House about the endowments of fellow political aides and even Secret Service agents.
Anthony Bernal is a serial bully and sexual harasser. He is protected by Jill Biden.
Some sources also said they consider it “hypocritical” for Biden to keep Bernal on his staff after the president vowed on his first day in office to fire aides “on the spot” if he hears that they have shown “disrespect” to people in their professional conduct.
“It reflects poorly on the president and the first lady,” said one of the sources who described verbal torment.
“They talk a big game about integrity, decency, and kindness but when you work for the Bidens, you experience anything but that,” said another former White House adviser, who, like other sources, asked for anonymity in order to speak candidly and for fear of retaliation.
“They choose to surround themselves with bullies who run around the White House like mean girls, making the president and first lady look like phonies to everyone in Washington because everyone on the inside talks about what happens there on the outside.”
The Biden White House is like high school with bullies.
“There’s no way [Jill Biden] doesn’t know. It has been going on so long,” the source said. “I don’t think she has a lot of advisers willing to give her a gut check. I think she thinks that Anthony’s like her bulldog protecting her.”
Another source, a former White House staffer, said: “There is genuine frustration with the first lady among the staff inside the White House. How can you write a children’s book about your husband fighting bullies while your most senior staffer harasses and berates the staff in your own office and your husband’s team on a regular basis?”
That source added: “This is the second administration I’ve worked in and I’ve never seen White House staff behavior this shocking. I hope a third party will step in and investigate or do an audit and interview staffers in secret without fear of retribution.
“Working for the Bidens is like living in another century,” that person went on. “You really cannot speak up without fear of personal or professional retaliation.
“He is by far the worst and most well-known abuser, but the Biden White House is a magnet for ugly and abusive workplace behavior. It’s totally inexcusable [in] this day [and] age, especially with Biden’s own narrative about standing up to bullies,” the source continued.
“Her book and his stern lecture at the beginning of the administration about respect for colleagues is all bulls—. They couldn’t care less how staff is treated because staff is totally disposable to them. They’ve had a revolving door of staff catering to them for their entire adult lives.”
Working for the Bidens is unpleasant. A lot of virtue signaling on top of it.
