Last month, President Joe Biden announced the resignation of of White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain.
The president said goodbye to Klain in a press conference Wednesday… but not before Klain embarassed himself by playing show-and-tell with a rock.
“I’m often asked, what is the best souvenir I got in two years as White House chief of staff? And my answer’s very simple,” Klain said, addressing the staff in the room.
“It’s this rock, this plain and simple rock.”
Klain went on to use the rock as a very literal symbol… and he struggled to talk through his tears.
“It was given to me a year ago on one of our darker days by Louisa Terrell,” Klain continued, referring to another key aide of Biden’s.
“And it’s always symbolized to me the fact that this team has been rock solid in their support of our agenda and the president. We’ve never wavered. We’ve been as solid as a rock.”
The Daily Wire called the rock a “boulder to cry on.”
Take a look —
Ron Klain breaks down sobbing as he recalls being given a rock by a White House staffer:
“It’s always symbolized to me… that this team has been rock solid.” pic.twitter.com/Dfi84a6O1g
— Addison Smith (@AddisonSmithTV) February 2, 2023
With Klaine’s regisnation, Biden is losing a key aide.
“I’ve known Ron since he was a kid, you know, a third-year law student,” Biden said. “He came to work with me in the United States Senate on the Senate Judiciary Committee a week after he got married. And he married a woman even brighter.”
The White House did not include Klain’s breakdown in the official transcript.
Klain told the room, “I joined Joe Biden’s Senate staff 36 years ago, and over those 36 years, I’ve picked up three kids, gotten two engaged, paid for six college and advanced degrees, So I just want to say this one thing today. I learned everything I know about how to be a good father from Joe Biden.”
Still, Klain acknowledged the possibility of returning to Biden’s team, calling it “the best job I’ve ever had.”
“Being White House chief of staff is the honor of a lifetime, but being Joe Biden’s, White House chief of staff has given me a unique opportunity to serve a wise, compassionate, determined, and fearless president,” Klain said.
“And as I did in 1988, and 2008, and 2020, I look forward to being on your side when you run for president in 2024.”
Biden has already Klain with Jeff Zients, a staffer best known as Biden’s coronavirus response coordinator.
Watch the full video here —
The Horn editorial team