Tag: Sean Spicer

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White House Press Secretary Holds “Invite Only” Press Gaggle With Select Media Outlets

Sean Spicer

Several White House reporters were surprised and outraged today as White House press secretary Sean Spicer chose to hold a private press gaggle in his office inviting “friendly” media outlets but blocking several that President Trump has publicly deemed as having less-than-favorable reports on his administration.

From The Hill:

Spicer decided to hold an off-camera “gaggle” with reporters inside his West Wing office instead of the traditional on-camera briefing in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room.

Among the outlets not permitted to cover the gaggle were news organizations that President Trump has singled out for criticism, including CNN.

The New York Times, The Hill, Politico, BuzzFeed, the Daily Mail, BBC, the Los Angeles Times and the New York Daily News were among the other news organizations not permitted to attend.

Several right-leaning outlets were allowed into Spicer’s office, including Breitbart, the Washington Times and One America News Network.

A number of major news organizations were also let in to cover the gaggle. That group included ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, Reuters and Bloomberg.

The White House Correspondents’ Association sharply criticized the decision.

“The WHCA board is protesting strongly against how today’s gaggle is being handled by the White House,” Jeff Mason, the association’s president, said in a statement.

“We encourage the organizations that were allowed in to share the material with others in the press corps who were not,” he added. “The board will be discussing this further with White House staff.”

A White House spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.

The “invitation only” presser drew quick rebuke from journalists.

From the New York Times:

“Nothing like this has ever happened at the White House in our long history of covering multiple administrations of different parties,” Dean Baquet, the executive editor of The Times, said in a statement. “We strongly protest the exclusion of The New York Times and the other news organizations. Free media access to a transparent government is obviously of crucial national interest.”

And then these from Twitter:

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SNL Cold Open: Melissa McCarthy Kills Again As “Sean Spicer”

Melissa McCarthy killed it again last night on Saturday Night Live as White House press secretary “Sean Spicer” in the cold open.

I won’t spoil any of the jokes for you. Just watch 🙂

It’s interesting to me that President Trump, who we’ve heard was not amused by the impersonation last week by McCarthy, hasn’t chimed in via Twitter yet.

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News Round-Up: February 6, 2017

Some news items you may have missed:

• It’s a grey day here in Las Vegas, but Eliad Cohen and friends have clearly found the sun in Playa del Carmen.

• White House press secretary Sean Spicer thinks Melissa McCarthy’s impression of him this past weekend on “Saturday Night Live” was a little over the top. Missing the point there, Sparky. Satire works best when it’s “over the top.”

• According to the New York Times, President Trump often spends evenings watching cable news shows in his bathrobe, and wandering around his new abode.

• Last night’s historic overtime Super Bowl game pulled in 113.7 million viewers.

• The U.S. Supreme Court will hear transgender student Gavin Grimm’s case on March 28.

• Elton John says Lady Gaga’s Super Bowl performance was “the most spectacular performance ever seen during Super Bowl half time.” Watch the video below if you missed it!

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SNL: Melissa McCarthy Kills As White Press Sec. Sean Spicer

Even though the SNL cast has lots of white guys who could take on lampooning White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, the satirical show reached out to an inspired choice to lampoon the beleaguered spokesman: Melissa McCarthy.

In a ‘take no prisoners’ guest appearance, McCarthy was almost unrecognizable as she took to the podium. Down to the ill-fitted suit, McCarthy gave a commanding, provocative performance.

Great satire happens when the subject’s characteristics are elevated to a new level, and McCarthy landed in that hilarious sweet spot.

“I’m here to swallow gum, and I’m here to take names.”

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Reports Swirling That Sean Spicer Might Be On His Way Out As White House Spox

Rumors already swirling that the current White House spokesman may be replaced soon as the Trumpster is reportedly not impressed with “Sparky” Spicer’s performance.

Or his fashion sense.

From Axios:

This West Wing is a tough neighborhood. Even AFTER Sean Spicer’s successful get-back-on-the-horse presser yesterday, I’m told that a top White House official was discussing his possible replacement. On Day 4! With 1,457 to go in this term.

Unfortunately for Spicer, Trump is obsessed with his press secretary’s performance art. Our Jonathan Swan hears that Trump hasn’t been impressed with how Spicer dresses, once asking an aide: “Doesn’t the guy own a dark suit?” Spicer looked a lot sharper yesterday than he did on Saturday — in a dark, bankerly suit.

And according to the Washington Post, Spicer wasn’t Trump’s gut choice:

“As Trump thought about staffing his administration following his surprise victory, he hesitated over selecting Spicer … He did not see Spicer as particularly telegenic and preferred a woman.”

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White House Spokesman Addressed Inauguration Crowd Size Because Trump Was “Enraged”

According to a contact of mine,  a high level producer at CNN, President Donald J. Trump directed White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer to address inauguration crowd sizes in the briefing room yesterday because he grew enraged by picture comparisons to former President Obama’s crowds.

Despite facts and images showing otherwise, Spicer FALSELY claimed that President Trump had the “largest audience to witness an inauguration, period.”

Why is the new President so obsessed with crowd sizes?

UPDATE:

For those interested, the Washington Post has confirmed Washington DC Metro ridership numbers for the past three full inauguration days.

For Trump: 571,000

Obama ’09: 1.1 million

Obama ’13: 783,000

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White House Spokesman Attacks Press Over “False Reporting” Inauguration Numbers

White House press secretary Sean Spicer attacked the White House press corps today for distorting attendance statistics at Trump’s inauguration.

“Some members of the media were engaged in deliberately false reporting.”

“This was the largest audience ever to witness an inauguration, period. Both in person and around the globe.”

This is pretty unprecedented. And also, a lie.

We have aerial photos from 11:45AM at Trump’s inauguration and from the same time in 2009 at Obama’s inauguration. The pics of the crowd at Trump’s inauguration showed lots of open space on the National Mall when compared side-by-side with pics of Obama’s 2009 inauguration.

The fact that this is what Trump is focusing on during his first full day as president is amazing.

Earlier today, Trump traveled to meet with members of the CIA in an attempt to clear the air from his attacks on the country’s intelligence agencies these past few weeks.

After a brief comment on that subject, saying the media made up a false war between the intelligence community and Trump (ummm, we have all the tweets where he attacked the intel community), Trump went on a rant about his attendance numbers there at the CIA while standing in front of a memorial for fallen intel agents.

#BadForm

Folks, this is how dictators start out. Accusing the press of false reporting when the truth is easily provable.

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DNC Calls Trump Spokesman A “Shill For Putin”

The Democratic National Committee has had enough of Team Trump’s denial of the Russian cyber-hacking that took place.

After White House press secretary Sean Spicer took a spin on the morning political shows saying there is “zero evidence” of Russian involvement, the DNC knocked Spicer for being a “shill” for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Via The Hill:

In an email, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) called Spicer’s comments false and pointed to an interview where several former White House press secretaries suggested President-elect Donald Trump often creates his own facts.

“Right on cue, Trump’s incoming White House press secretary was on the morning shows today spinning the falsehood that there is ‘zero evidence’ that Russia influenced the election through their hacking of DNC and Clinton campaign officials,” the DNC email stated. The email was sent under a subject line arguing that the incoming White House press secretary “shills for Putin.”

On Fox News on Monday, Spicer claimed there was “zero evidence” of Russian interference in the 2016 election, despite intelligence agencies’s reports about the hacking campaign leading up to Trump’s electoral win.

The fact of the matter is all 17 of the US intelligence agencies agree “with confidence” that Russia not only hacked into American email servers but did so with the purpose of interfering in the presidential election.

All 17 agencies.

Team Trump’s denials are based on fears that his electoral “win” might somehow be delegitimized if the Russian’s efforts are acknowledged.

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Trump Names Kellyanne Conway ‘Counselor To The President,’ Sean Spicer Tapped For Press Secretary

Kellyanne Conway

Via The Hollywood Reporter:

President-elect Donald Trump picked his trusted adviser Kellyanne Conway to serve as counselor to the president and named Sean Spicer as press secretary on Thursday.

Conway, who is described as “the Trump whisperer,” has been serving as a senior member of Trump’s transition team after successfully running his presidential campaign as campaign manager. She became Trump’s third campaign manager after Trump won the Republican nomination and is the first female campaign manager of either major party to win a presidential general election.

Conway will be the highest-ranking female in Trump’s White House. In her position, she will continue her role as a close adviser to the president and will work with senior leadership to effectively communicate and execute the administration’s legislative priorities and actions, according to the statement.

Later on Thursday, Trump also announced the senior members of his communications team, naming Spicer press secretary, Hope Hicks, who has served as his spokeswoman, as director of strategic communications, Jason Miller as director of communications and Dan Scavino as director of social media.

“Sean, Hope, Jason and Dan have been key members of my team during the campaign and transition,” said Trump in a statement. “I am excited they will be leading the team that will communicate my agenda that will Make America Great Again.”

Spicer has served as chief strategist and communications director for the Republican National Committee since 2011.

According to reports, Scavino was formerly a golf caddie that Trump met on one of his golf courses.

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CNN’s Chris Cuomo Fact Checks Trump Spox About “Overwhelming” Win

Sean Spicer, the Republican National Committee spokesman rumored to be on the short list for Trump’s White House Press Secretary, told CNN’s Chris Cuomo that Team Trump has been “unbelievably transparent” about his business dealings and the roles of his children in his administration.

“The American people have understood exactly what they’re getting, and they voted overwhelmingly for him,” Spicer said on CNN’s New Day. “He has been very clear about what he owns, the role of his family and everything else since he announced that he was running for president — and they overwhelmingly elected him with all of that on the table.”

Cuomo stepped in with some facts (via Raw Story):

“We know that more people are concerned about his business dealing than who are not, we know that his approval rating is low compared to where other president-elects have been at this point — but let’s dismiss the polls,” Cuomo said. “You said they overwhelmingly voted for him. There is no definition of overwhelming that would meet this statistical criteria.”

“It’s one of the lowest electoral margins we’ve had — I think it’s 46th out of 50-something,” Cuomo continued. “It’s one of the lowest in the last few cycles we’ve had. He won, he’s the president-elect, he will be the next president of the United States, but I’m saying, if you want to be straight about it and transparent — it wasn’t overwhelming.”

Regarding his children, Trump said during a debate that he would put his assets into a blind trust, which he is not doing.

Plus, his sons, who are to run the Trump companies, are sitting in on presidential meetings Trump has with foreign leaders and corporate CEOs, all of which is a huge conflict of interest.