Aubrey Plaza admits she stole notes from Joe Biden’s office while filming an episode of Parks and Recreation.
Everyone knows Aubrey Plaza is unpredictable, awkward, and haunting in all ways that make her a fascinating Hollywood figure, but did anyone see her as a thief? I suppose she did play a scam artist in 2022’s Emily the Criminal, but stealing from the White House is a bold act even for her. That’s right, friends. Aubrey Plaza stole documents from the White House, though not of the classified variety.
Speaking with The New York Times, Plaza says she stole notes about herself from then Vice President Joe Biden’s office. The theft happened in 2012 when Plaza played April Ludgate in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. Biden appeared in an episode when April (Plaza) and Amy Poehler’s Leslie Knope tour the White House. Biden was Vice President to Barak Obama then and knew Plaza from a previous encounter.
Plaza says she met Biden as a teenager while attending a “Joe Biden youth-leadership conference.” She says they spoke before the tour began, exchanging anecdotes about their ties to the state of Delaware.
“He knew my name. He was, like, ‘Aubrey!’” Plaza told the New Yorker. “Whenever I see him, he always tells me the same story. His first wife went to the same high school that I went to, so he always tells me about how he used to wait outside the convent for her, because it’s an all-girls Catholic school—and it’s a very sweet story, but I’ve heard it a lot. I was, like, ‘I know, Joe! She went to Ursuline!’”
While visiting Biden’s office, Plaza uncovered a note on Biden’s desk with bullet-point facts about her, including how they met and previous conversation topics. Plaza then stole the memo, saying the act was penance for not remembering her. Parks and Recreation creator Michael Schur eventually learned about the theft and read Plaza the riot act.
“I was like ‘I knew it! He doesn’t remember me at all!’ But that’s how politicians are, you know? I pocketed it, and Mike Schur, the creator of ‘Parks and Rec,’ was horrified. He was, like, ‘You cannot steal from the White House!’ And I was, like, ‘I don’t give a shit! I know what he did! He didn’t know me!’” Plaza said. “Yeah, I stole it right off his desk. And there’s got to be cameras in the White House. But they didn’t do anything to me.”
Sadly, or maybe on purpose, Plaza says she lost the note.
“Can you imagine if I’d kept it? I could’ve framed it or sold it,” Plaza said. “Now he’s the President — I had no idea.”
While I don’t think the Secret Service will be banging on Plaza’s door anytime soon, I’d love to be a fly on the wall if Biden discovers her act of theft. I believe he’s got bigger fish to fry. Plus, Biden might appreciate her defiance. It’s undoubtedly part of Plaza’s charm for the general public. I would not be surprised if her spiciness also works for the President of the United States.