A peek behind the Obama White House curtain
Beck Dorey-Stein didn’t set out to become a Craigslist poster-child. But after landing a position in the Oval Office working for Barack Obama, thanks to the classified website, she worries her new memoir may inspire people to drop out of school seeking their own jobs at the White House.
The Pennsylvania native had no political aspirations in 2012 when she applied to the vague online ad for a stenographer. And she had no patience for the “ladderclimbing bobbleheads” who dominated Washington, D.C., social life, or their constant questioning of “So what do you do?” At the time, Dorey-Stein was employed as a temporary tutor at a private academy attended by Malia and Sasha Obama and Joe Biden’s granddaughters, supplementing her income with four other part-time gigs. Although she lacked in cash, Dorey-Stein did have a boyfriend with whom she was head over heels. He was the main reason she continued to suck up Washington’s tedium. From the Corner of the Oval chronicles Dorey-Stein’s time, from 2012 to 2016, as an Oval Office stenographer, stealthily recording and transcribing press conferences and events. Her memoir reads like a journal, which is exactly what how it started — her creative swears, exuberant exclamation points and juicy gossip are all intact.
“I was writing it as it happened. I was writing as we were taking off on Air Force One,” Dorey-Stein says, sharing her excitement over the presidential aircraft’s customized boxes of M&Ms. “I wanted to capture that sensation because it was so bizarre and surreal.”
Dorey-Stein didn’t write From the Corner of the Oval, which has been optioned for film by Universal Pictures, with Washington insiders or political junkies in mind. Although she does provide behind-the-curtains glimpses into iconic moments — including POTUS’s emotional address after the Sandy Hook shooting and his historic visit to Cuba — the scenes are framed around DoreyStein’s struggles to navigate life down the rabbit hole. She hopes her book will speak to women early in their careers who are afraid of making mistakes or of not fitting into the office culture.
“Being in your twenties is not easy, and I think especially women in the twenties are hard on themselves,” she says. “I wanted to write it for those who are feeling unlucky or overlooked to keep going.”
From the Corner of the Oval also acts as something of a warning call. The highoctane life of White House staffers travelling the world together meant that coveted downtime was often spent partying and blowing off stress, whether around a pool or on a sweaty dance floor.
Despite her feelings for her boyfriend, Dorey-Stein stumbled into an ongoing affair with another staffer, whom she describes as a Jim Carrey look-alike. His increasingly jerky behaviour toward her becomes much of the book’s focus, as the world stage recedes like a backdrop.
As she (somewhat) hid her broken heart, Dorey-Stein continued mastering the nuances of her job. She abandoned her cheerful teacher’s wardrobe for neutral business attire from Banana Republic and Ann Taylor Loft, as bright colours were reserved for those women higher in the pecking order, known as “the Vagiants.” But it’s not the uniformity of her fashion that established Dorey-Stein’s place within the ranks, but rather her athletic prowess.
A lifelong athlete, she credits years of team sports with the time-management skills and endorphin-seeking highs that helped her excel in the position. She started playing pickup basketball with a group of male staffers, who became close friends. And her treadmill routine also provided a delightful personal moment, as Dorey-Stein found herself sweaty, face-to-face with Obama, who teased her about her running speed.
Although Dorey-Stein does fangirl over the former president, she calls the true heroes of her book “the amazing women in the White House who just totally had my back.”
“I wrote the book because I could not, not write the book. It was such an exciting time and absurdly lucky opportunity,” she says.