Former Vice President Mike Pence said he was "heartened" by comments from Julia Curlee, a trans woman who served as his daily briefer at the Central Intelligence Agency, regarding her experience working in his office.
"I was heartened to hear Julia reflect that that was the experience that took place in our office," Pence said in response to Curlee's remarks.
Curlee, who presented the President's Daily Brief during Pence's vice presidency, published her account in The Atlantic. She described respectful treatment and recalled a moment when Pence held her mother's hand and told her, "you must be very proud of your daughter."
Curlee had initially resisted sharing her experience publicly, despite encouragement from friends who pointed out that a trans woman had worked for Pence without incident. She kept photographs from her time in the office and maintained what she called a stance of serving in silence. Her decision to go public came after the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot.
Pence had invited his PDB briefers for a farewell photograph in the West Wing following the change of administration.
