Biden administration claims 77% turnover rate in White House staff as compared to Richard Nixon

WASHINGTON, DC: President Joe Biden's White House staff has experienced a 77% turnover rate since assuming office in 2021, making it the largest since former President Richard Nixon's time.

According to a report from Open the Books, the White House boasts 565 staff members at a cost of almost $61 million, a minor increase from the record-breaking 560 staff members Biden had in his first year of office.

Joe Biden is the first president to boast over 500 staffers since Richard Nixon

The report said that Biden is the first president to claim more than 500 employees since Nixon, a staff so large that Time magazine said in 1971 that it was expanding with "startling rapidity."

First Lady Jill Biden's staff has grown to 24 in 2024, more than doubling the number of former First Lady Melania Trump's staff, which peaked at 11, and matching the much-maligned number of former First Lady Michelle Obama's staff in 2009.

The report states that the first lady's staff, which includes advisers in foreign policy, education, and healthcare, comes with a $2.5 million price tag.

President Joe Biden's staff is far larger than that of his immediate predecessors

President Biden's staff is far larger than that of his immediate predecessors during the same period of time. For example, former President Donald Trump had 413 employees during Fiscal Year 2020 while former President Barack Obama had 468 employees during Fiscal Year 2012.

At the same time, the president's current salary of $60.8 million surpasses the highest levels under both Trump and Obama. The highest payroll under Obama was $58.3 million, adjusted for inflation, while the highest payroll under Trump is $52.2 million.

Joe Biden's highest paid staffer is Michelle Barrans

Michelle Barrans, an associate counsel "on detail" from the Securities and Exchange Commission, makes $251,258 a year, making her Biden's highest paid employee. Farah Ahmad, a special advisor for economic development, is paid the second most, with a salary of $191,900.

Joe Biden has also seen overwhelming turnover since he took office in 2021

However, Biden has also experienced a high rate of employee turnover since taking office in 2021; 435 of the original 560 employees have left since the numbers were initially released.

A White House spokesperson acknowledged a nine percent increase in staff from last year, noting that the increase was "primarily driven by building out teams with a certain policy focus, such as the Office of Pandemic Preparedness & Response Policy and the Office of Gun Violence Prevention."

"Over the last year, the White House also filled vacancies across various departments — and these vacancies were not reflected in the July 1, 2023, report," the spokesperson added.

Internet slams Joe Biden administration for unnecessarily boasting biggest staff since Richard Nixon

Netizens lambasted the current US president, with one tweeting, "Its exhausting babysitting Baby Biden." Another wrote, "Why boast about having that big of a staff to result in nothing that helps the American people." 

"Getting ice cream, changing diapers, wrangling an old man, making sure the teleprompter used little words and big type. 'This is not what I signed up to do after getting out of Georgetown with a degree in poli sci!'" remarked one. 

A user tweeted, "Why is that something to boast about? So a bloated bureaucracy is a good thing? These people are so out of touch," while another echoed, "The bloated bureaucracy is alive and well, churning through staff like a revolving door! #BidenAdministration #GovernmentWaste." "Why is having a less efficient/larger staff a good thing?" questioned one user. 

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