White House announces press briefing after record six weeks without one
- Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will brief reporters on Monday afternoon, ending the longest period without an official White House media briefing since President Donald Trump took office.
- Sanders will appear alongside acting budget director Russell Vought on Monday, the White House says. The administration released its budget proposal for fiscal year 2020 earlier in the day.
- The Trump administration has largely done away with press briefings. In his first 18 months, Trump held fewer briefings than each of the five presidents before him.
Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders will brief reporters on Monday afternoon, ending the longest period without an official White House media briefing since President Donald Trump took office.
Sanders will appear alongside acting budget director Russell Vought at 2 pm. ET, the White House said. The administration released its budget proposal for fiscal year 2020 earlier in the day.
The Trump administration has largely done away with press briefings. In his first 18 months, Trump held fewer briefings than each of the five presidents before him.
It has been 42 days since Sanders last briefed the press. That briefing came 41 days after the previous briefing. In the Sanders era, the length of time between briefings is longer than any of the preceding 13 press secretaries, according to the American Presidency Project.
In January, Trump said he told Sanders "not to bother" with briefings.
"The reason Sarah Sanders does not go to the "podium" much anymore is that the press covers her so rudely & inaccurately, in particular certain members of the press," the president wrote in a post on Twitter.
Trump, who has made a campaign rallying cry of the phrase "fake news," has long had a rocky relationship with the press. His administration has been criticized for being one of the least transparent in history.
The White House maintains that Trump is open with journalists, and touts his prolific use of social media and willingness to answer questions in informal settings.