Psaki Calls Leavitt a Liar on Exit
Psaki Calls Leavitt a Liar on Exit
The News
Former Biden press secretary Jen Psaki accused outgoing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt of lying in the job, saying it is impossible to serve as Donald Trump's press secretary without lying.
Psaki made the remarks on MS NOW while discussing Leavitt's departure, which Trump announced this week.
She also said Leavitt turned the briefing room into a "personal safe space" filled with people "there to applaud Donald Trump."
Timeline
Trump announced that Leavitt, the youngest person ever to hold the press secretary job, is leaving. Leavitt cited family priorities.
Psaki's MS NOW segment aired, in which she called Leavitt a liar, said Leavitt briefed reporters only once or twice a week, and said Leavitt faced hardly any tough questions. NBC's Peter Alexander appeared alongside her.
The White House, Fox News, the New York Post and NewsBusters pushed back; Mediaite published an opinion piece arguing Psaki skipped over her own record at the podium.
Reactions
Psaki said the briefing room under Leavitt was "much more filled with people who are there to applaud Donald Trump" than during her own tenure, describing an audience of MAGA sycophants and podcasters.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle said Psaki "couldn't hold a candle" to Leavitt.
Tricia McLaughlin, formerly the Department of Homeland Security's assistant secretary for public affairs, said outlets from the New York Times to CNN had praised Leavitt's professionalism and responsiveness.
Mediaite, in an opinion piece, wrote that few expect Psaki to deliver an objective assessment of the Trump press office she once ran the Democratic version of, and faulted her for bypassing her own tenure.
What's Next
Leavitt exits at the end of the month. No successor has been named.
The White House plans to use guest hosts for briefings in the interim.
Open questions: who replaces her, whether briefing frequency changes, and whether the "new media" seat stays.
More
The dispute is narrower than the insults suggest. Psaki's case is that Leavitt engineered a friendly room to dodge accountability. The White House's case is that Leavitt was accessible and well-reviewed even by outlets hostile to Trump. Both sides are arguing about the same set of briefings.
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