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White House chief strategist Steve Bannon said the reason Sean Spicer is doing less on camera is because he “got fatter”. Picture: AFP
WHITE House chief strategist Steve Bannon knows why spokesman Sean Spicer is holding off-camera press briefings — “Sean got fatter.”
The New York Post reports that Bannon responded to a question from the Atlantic on why the White House has been downgrading the briefings to gaggles and then to off-camera events.
“Sean got fatter,” he wrote in a text message.
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White House press secretary Sean Spicer. Picture: APSource:AP
Senior Counsellor to the President, Steve Bannon. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Bannon didn’t respond to follow-up questions, the Atlantic reported.
Chelsea Clinton called out Mr Bannon on Twitter for ‘fat shaming’ Spicer.
The issue over the tightly controlled briefings came to a head yesterday when the White House said Spicer’s off-camera gaggle would not be available for broadcast or audio.
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Melissa McCarthy has regularly lampooned Sean Spicer on Saturday Night Live. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied
“I’ve said it since the beginning — the president spoke today, he was on camera,” Spicer explained. “He’ll make another comment today at the technology summit. And there are days that I’ll decide that the president’s voice should be the one that speaks, and iterate his priorities.”
The White House Correspondents Association has criticised the lack of media availability and has said it would “object” to any move by the Trump administration to cancel the briefings.
Reports say Spicer is being moved away from his role as press secretary and the White House is looking for a replacement, with conservative radio host Laura Ingraham and London’s Daily Mail’s US political editor David Martosko in the running.
The Daily Mail's US political editor David Martosko may get Sean Spicer's job at the White House. Picture: TwitterSource:Supplied
Radio Host Laura Ingraham is being considered for Sean Spicer’s job. Picture: AFPSource:AFP
Last month, Trump suggested ending the briefings that have been a routine part of past administrations.
“Well, just don’t have them,” Mr Trump said on Fox News. “Unless I have them every two weeks and I do them myself, we don’t have them. I think it’s a good idea.”
This article originally appeared in the New York Post and is republished here with permission.