President-elect Joe Bidenâs incoming deputy chief of staff, Jen OâMalley Dillon, is not holding back on her opinion of Republican lawmakers amid the president-electâs call for unity.
During an interview with Glamour, OâMalley Dillon weighed in on Glennon Doyleâs comment on the âredefining of compromise.â
âYes, exactly. And frankly, thatâs what we need. The president-elect was able to connect with people over this sense of unity. In the primary, people would mock him, like, âYou think you can work with Republicans?â Iâm not saying theyâre not a bunch of f***ers,â she said.
OâMalley Dillon went on to call Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) âterrible.â
She emphasized Biden still believes he can work with lawmakers to get things done.
âBut this sense that you couldnât wish for that, you couldnât wish for this bipartisan ideal? He rejected that. From start to finish, he set out with this idea that unity was possible, that together we are stronger, that we, as a country, need healing, and our politics needs that too,â OâMalley Dillion said.
She explained she believes people âwant to see us moving in a path forwardâ
OâMalley Dillon went on, âAnd this overhang of this negative, polarized electorate that politics has created is the thing that I think we can break down.â
She told Doyle that compromise is about having tough conversations.
âLike Joe Biden says all the time, âGreat leadership starts with listening.â Itâs challenging for us to do that right now, because of how polarized we are. But politics breaks down to one-on-one conversations and not being afraid to talk,â OâMalley Dillon said.
She reiterated compromise is a good thing.
âThe atmosphere in the world now is like, âOh, if you compromise, you donât believe in something.â No, itâs: I believe in it so much that Iâm going to work to find a path we can both go down together,â OâMalley Dillon continued.
