Trump just set a record for the longest number of days between press briefings, as it has been 66 days since reporters have been able to question the administration.
Ari Melber said on his MSNBC show The Beat, “What everyone is talking about is a negative record for the White House. 66 days since the last formal press briefing in March. The footage you see from the press secretary is months old. Because neither miss Sanders or any other official has stepped to that lectern in 66 days. A record for any administration in the past 26 years… This is not normal. As you certainly know if you watch the news across both parties, the White House holds, usually over ten briefings a month and often on a daily basis to inform the public about developments. Under Trump, there have been two briefings this year.”
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The lack of briefings has spread to the entire administration.
The Pentagon briefing room is hosting Gene Simmons instead of answering reporters’ questions about war with Iran:
As tensions between Iran and the United States increase in the Middle East, the Pentagon briefing room is being used to host Gene Simmons of Kiss. pic.twitter.com/NauZ0bfkgm
— Idrees Ali (@idreesali114) May 16, 2019
Instead of doing press briefings, Trump and his administration have taken up residence on Fox News. Nearly one-third of all of the interviews that Trump has given as president has been with Fox News or Fox Business.
Trump is dodging accountability by not holding press briefings. It is impossible for reporters to get answers of any depth or substance when the president limits his interactions with them to a few minutes when he is leaving the White House. Trump has damaged so many democratic norms, but one of the most dangerous is his belief that he does not need to be accountable to the American people.
The record that Trump has broken is a disgrace to democracy, and the public’s right to know.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
