From 2005 to 2006, Psaki served as communications director to U.S. representative Joseph Crowley and regional press secretary for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

[19][20] On September 22, 2011, Psaki left this position to become senior vice president and managing director at the Washington, D.C., office of public relations firm Global Strategy Group.

[29] On May 6, in an interview with former senior advisor to the president David Axelrod, Psaki suggested she would depart from the position of press secretary "in about a year from now".

[30][31] In October, Psaki was accused by a watchdog group of violating the Hatch Act for her comments on the 2021 Virginia gubernatorial election.

[36] After quarantining and fully recovering, she returned to work on November 12 and credited her vaccination status for her recovery without complications.

[37] On March 22, 2022, Psaki tested positive for COVID-19 for the second time in six months and did not accompany President Biden on his trip to Europe.

[42][43] Psaki made her first television appearance after leaving her position as White House press secretary on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon discussing the Robb Elementary School shooting.

[45] On September 25, 2023, the program took over MSNBC's Monday 8 p.m. Eastern prime time slot, which was previously a secondary timeslot for All In with Chris Hayes.

[46] Journalists at NBC News, the sister network of MSNBC, expressed anger and trepidation about Psaki's move to MSNBC, fearing that it would damage NBC's brand and "reinforce the impression, already well-established in opinion polls, that the news business in the US works hand-in-glove with political factions.

This led to concerns from NBC's own White House correspondent, Kristen Welker, that she could have shown favoritism toward her potential employers to secure her new role.

Although other staffers have moved from the White House to cable news, making Psaki an anchor and not a political analyst was unusual.

[50][51] In the book, Psaki stated that President Biden did not look at his watch during the dignified transfer of remains for 13 US service members killed in the Abbey Gate bombing in Afghanistan.

[56][57] In June 2024, Psaki agreed to appear before the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs for a transcribed interview about the Biden Administration's withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021.