NBCPolitics: Sean Spicer on reports his role is changing: “I’m right here…so you can keep taking your selfies, s… https://t.co/PIJ0LBu0ZJ
— Channel 1 Politics (@ch1election) June 20, 2017
On Tuesday, embattled Press Secretary Sean Spicer held his first on-camera briefing since July 8, and naturally, questions arose regarding his continued occupancy of this position. He must have dreaded the very moment, but these inquiries follow reports that not only is Spicer seeking a replacement for himself, but Steve Bannon essentially fat-shamed his colleague when asked about the subject. And of course, rumored replacements have also weighed in, so what response did Spicer have when pressed? Oh, he laughed because everyone is so silly: “I’m right here, haha! You can keep taking your selfies, selfie folks.”
Spicey handled his temperament comparatively well today — certainly better than during his recent bolting sessions that left reporters shouting his name in frustration — and may have had a weekend reboot. He acknowledged that the White House is making some adjustments and seeking new personnel. “We’re always looking for ways to do a better job of articulating the president’s message and his agenda, and we’ll continue to have those discussions internally,” Spicer promised. “When we have an announcement of a personnel nature, we’ll let you know.”
These assurances mean very little because Spicer’s statements often run contrary to what Trump ends up doing. Even more bizarrely, Spicer began to pretend that the White House has done as “very good job” with transparency despite a lack of recent on-record briefings. The press secretary told reporters that briefings are only one aspect of the White House’s communication, and he feels that they provide “multiple more opportunities” for access than previous administrations did. For good measure, Spicer also paid lip service to the First Amendment.
Spicer: WH has done “very good job” w/ transparency.
This is his 1st on-camera briefing since 6/12. Monday’s was off-camera, audio banned. pic.twitter.com/9xcx9FPqxj
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) June 20, 2017
Another weird thing happened during this briefing. In response to whether President Trump knows if Russia interfered in the election, Spicer — despite countless U.S. intelligence confirmations that this happened — responded, “I have not sat down and talked to him about that specifically.”
June 20, 2017 — Spicer still can’t say if Trump believes that Russia interfered in the 2016 election, despite U.S. intel saying they did pic.twitter.com/VIwCZmfpuc
— Bradd Jaffy (@BraddJaffy) June 20, 2017