White House press secretary Sarah Sanders to leave post
President Donald Trump called White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders forward at a White House event Thursday to declare: “We’ve been through a lot together, and she’s tough, but she’s good.”
After Trump described her as a “warrior,” Sanders said the job had been the “honor of a lifetime.”
“I’ve loved every minute, even the hard minutes,” she said. “I have three amazing kids and I’m going to spend a little more time with them.”
Sanders held her last press briefing in March, 94 days ago, and the news of her departure was first issued by Trump on Twitter. Trump has issued his own statements via Twitter, met with individual news organizations for interviews and answered reporters’ questions himself rather than through the press secretary.
A run for governor?
“After 3 1/2 years, our wonderful Sarah Huckabee Sanders will be leaving the White House at the end of the month and going home to the Great State of Arkansas,” Trump tweeted on Thursday. He hoped she would run for state governor, as her father, Mike Huckabee, once did.
Sanders, in fact, served as press secretary since July 2017.
“She is a very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job! I hope she decides to run for Governor of Arkansas — she would be fantastic,” Trump wrote on Twitter.
Mueller report questions
Regular White House press briefings effectively ceased and Sanders gave interviews to channels such as Fox News instead.
Her credibility came into question with the release of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report into Russian interference in the 2016 election campaign.
The report showed that Sanders admitted to investigators she had made an unfounded claim about “countless” FBI agents reaching out to express support for the president’s decision to fire FBI Director James Comey in May 2017.
jm/sms (Reuters, AP)
Every evening, DW sends out a selection of the day’s news and features. Sign up here.
Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/white-house-press-secretary-sarah-sanders-to-leave-post/a-49188870?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf