By Paul LeBlanc, CNN
Updated 5:21 PM ET, Sun January 12, 2020
Washington (CNN) White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham has rebuffed a recent CNN opinion piece from 13 former White House press secretaries, foreign service and military officials arguing for the return of daily press briefings.
“This is groupthink at its finest. The press has unprecedented access to President Trump, yet they continue to complain because they can’t grandstand on TV,” Grisham told Axios in response to the opinion piece. “They’re not looking for information, they’re looking for a moment. This President is unorthodox in everything he’s done. He’s rewritten the rules of politics. His press secretary and everyone else in the administration is reflective of that.”
Grisham has yet to hold a single briefing since taking the role of President Donald Trump’s chief spokeswoman in July, deciding instead to participate in interviews with friendly conservative television outlets like Fox News and One America News Network. Scrutiny over the lack of briefings has heightened in recent weeks amid escalating tensions with Iran.
Prior to the Trump administration, regular press briefings were the norm for decades. Under previous administrations, including Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, the White House and State Department held daily or almost daily briefings.
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Article URL : https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/12/politics/stephanie-grisham-cnn-editorial-response/index.html