Jill Biden Silent After 'Work Husband's' Accusations

Jill Biden speaking about Cancer Moonshot at 2016 Social Good Summit, 2016. Photo courtesy of The White House. Public domain.

It reads like a political potboiler, but the drama being uncovered about the Biden White House is no fiction. A mysterious adviser, whispered cover-ups, and a shrinking presidential presence — it's a story where personal loyalty may have collided with public accountability. At the center of it all stands Anthony Bernal, the longtime aide and confidant to First Lady Jill Biden, known privately and provocatively as her "work husband," according to the New York Post.

And now, Bernal finds himself pulled into a widening storm of questions. Did he help conceal former President Joe Biden's cognitive decline? How much power did this behind-the-scenes operator really have — and what was he willing to do to protect it?

The Loyal Aide With Unmatched Access

Anthony Bernal is no ordinary staffer. A former child actor turned political aide, Bernal joined Jill Biden's team in 2008 and never looked back. Over the years, he rose to become one of the most powerful figures in the White House — not by title, but by proximity and influence.

While many top advisers rotated in and out of the President's inner circle, Bernal stayed. He wasn't just present for photo ops or ceremonial events. He moved to Wilmington during the 2020 campaign, lived in the White House residence during the pandemic, and remained close to the first family through every political twist and personal turn.

When Biden took time off to recover from a bruising debate performance during the 2024 campaign, only four people were allowed by his side. Bernal was one of them.

A Culture of Control and Secrecy

What made Bernal so essential — at least to Jill Biden — wasn't just his loyalty. It was his control. According to a recent book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, "Original Sin," Bernal's influence contributed to something resembling a shadow government within the Biden White House.

According to former staff cited by the New York Post, Bernal enforced a strict culture of loyalty, interrogating aides and keeping score of "who was with them and against them."

In an undercover video cited in the same article, former White House staffer Deterrian Jones described Bernal as "scary... like a Wizard of Oz-type figure," invisible to the public but wielding enormous influence.

It was Bernal, not a chief of staff or press secretary, who allegedly planned Jill Biden's Vogue covers, coordinated her travel, and orchestrated her public image.

Shielding the President?

The accusations now gaining traction aren't just about toxic workplace culture — they're about whether Bernal was a central player in a broader effort to shield the President's health problems from the American public.

As Biden's cognitive health became scrutinized, especially after the first 2024 debate, insiders say Jill Biden remained his fiercest defender and staunchest enabler. She wasn't alone. Bernal reportedly worked alongside her to deflect concerns and push forward with the re-election campaign — even as anxiety simmered behind closed doors.

That internal pressure spilled into public view. Jill Biden, bristling at questions about her husband's abilities, reportedly fumed at White House staff who dared raise concerns. According to the same book, she rejected suggestions to pull back, and Bernal was instrumental in maintaining the illusion of control.

Now, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer is demanding answers. According to the New York Post, he's investigating what he calls a "historic scandal," issuing interview requests to Bernal and other top aides.

At issue is whether executive orders and pardons were authorized without the President's full knowledge — and whether Bernal facilitated the use of an autopen for official signatures during Biden's final months in office.

'The Worst Person They Had Ever Met'

Bernal's reputation within the West Wing was divisive at best and hostile at worst.

Multiple former colleagues described him as manipulative, petty, and feared. According to Fox News, one anonymous staffer told Tapper and Thompson that Bernal "would not be welcome at my funeral."

Others accused him of bullying, while a 2023 report by the New York Post revealed allegations of verbal sexual harassment spanning a decade — including inappropriate speculation about coworkers' bodies.

Still, he remained "untouchable," the New York Post reported. Jill Biden adored him, sources say, and that made him immune from accountability. Even as whispers grew louder, Bernal's influence appeared only to deepen.

Power, Image, and the Cost of Loyalty

This isn't a simple story of a powerful aide. It's about the collision between image and reality — how loyalty and friendship may have crossed a dangerous line into deception.

Was Bernal protecting the Bidens — or protecting himself? Did his devotion to Jill Biden blind him to the responsibilities of public service? And how did a man who didn't even work directly for the President come to wield such outsize power inside the White House?

For now, Anthony Bernal remains silent.

But the walls are starting to talk.

References: Miranda Devine: Jill Biden's 'work husband' Anthony Bernal may have played a key role in covering up Joe's cognitive decline | Inside Jill Biden's political rise amid her husband's cognitive decline: Book | 'Intensely loyal' Jill Biden aide despised by White House staffers, new book claims