At a press briefing Wednesday, White House press secretary Josh Earnest admitted that the White House is not the "perfect example" of an equal pay organization.

During the briefing, a reporter noted that, despite pay equity being a signature issue for the Obama administration, women working in the White House earn 88 cents for every dollar that men do. "If this has been a signature issue for the president for six years," the reporter asked, "and he can't even bring his own staff into closer alignment, is 100% pay equity simply impossible?"

Earnest called it a "difficult policy challenge" because of the many causes on the gender gap–a point that critics of this White House campaign have often pointed out. But Earnest maintained, "It's something that we're aiming for.

Earnest attempted to argue that the White House gap "Depends on how you want to calculate that," and that their disparity is smaller than the average gap in the private sector.

"I wouldn't hold up the White House as the perfect example here," he conceded, "but we are an example of an organization that is making an effort and enjoying some success in making sure that there are women who get equal pay for equal work."