Joe Biden’s Administration Has Higher Departure Rate than Trump’s, Obama’s

President Joe Biden’s White House staffers are leaving their jobs at a 15 percent higher rate than the staffers of former Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama.

The White House’s 2022 annual staffing report listed 474 staffers employed as of July 1, far below the 560 employees listed in the 2021 staffing report. The difference equates to a more than 15 percent drop in White House employees in Biden’s White House.

Both Trump’s and Obama’s staff tenures were far more stable. According to Open the Books, Trump’s White House only experienced a one percent staff reduction (377 to 372) during his first year in office, while four percent (485 to 466) of Obama’s employees left the White House during his first year.

The high rate of employees exiting Biden’s White House is likely due to the downward trend of the administration’s reputation. With the president’s approval rating pegged at 30 percent amid expectations Democrats will lose the House and potentially the Senate in the November midterms, White House staffers may believe their careers could be better off outside the White House.

Former staffers of the president in recent weeks and months have left for administrative agency positions and establishment media gigs, where they can develop their careers outside the gloom of Biden’s presidency. Just like any other political position in Washington, D.C., White House staffers are careful not to tie themselves to unsuccessful organizations.

Biden’s administration has seen high-profile employee departures in recent weeks. On Wednesday, Biden’s longtime trusted aide Kate Bedingfield announced she was leaving the White House. Bedingfield’s exit came a month after former White House press secretary Jen Psaki departed the White House in May, followed by four other press staff departures.

Working with Biden seems to be a challenge. White House staff have frequently contradicted Biden’s policy statements and cleaned up the president’s gaffes in front of the press. White House staff have also begun to provide Biden with notecard prompts on how to conduct meetings.

According to Gallup polling, 59 percent of voters are worried about Biden’s mental and physical fitness.

Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.