Sarah Sanders Admits She’s More Angry About The McCain Insult Leaking Than The Comment Itself

According to Saturday reporting from Axios, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders expressed more anger about the leak of a hateful comment made against the “dying” John McCain than about the comment itself.

Axios notes that during an “intense” meeting on Friday, Sanders briefly noted that she wasn’t happy with Kelly Sadler’s hateful comment, but she appeared more angry that it went public.

Sadler reportedly said of McCain’s opposition to Trump CIA pick Gina Haspel: “It doesn’t matter, he’s dying anyway,”

More from the Axios report:

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At yesterday’s meeting of the White House communications team — in the wake of a leak from the prior meeting of a callous remark about John McCain’s brain cancer — a visibly upset and furious Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told the group: “I am sure this conversation is going to leak, too. And that’s just disgusting,” according to a source in the room.

…

Sources in the room on Friday told me senior leaders on the press team spent more time focused on the fact that Sadler’s now-infamous comment had leaked, than that it was said in the first place.

In an emotional speech in the Roosevelt Room, Sanders lambasted the press and communications team for the leak

The communications team still isn’t on the same page

Despite Sanders’ meeting on Friday, the White House communications team is still clearly not on the same page.

According to Axios, White House strategic communications director Mercedes Schlapp actually defended Sadler’s hateful comment, even though Sanders privately said it was inappropriate.

The report noted: “At one point, per a source in the room, White House strategic communications director Mercedes Schlapp interjected with a word of support for Sadler.”

“You can put this on the record… I stand with Kelly Sadler,” Schlapp said, according to Axios.

If the White House was serious about making this right, they wouldn’t just apologize for the hateful comment, but they would fire Kelly Sadler and anybody else who shares her hateful sentiments.

They’ve done neither.

Sean Colarossi

Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.