New White Home press secretary Kayleigh McEnany has historical past of birtherism

As somebody who has gone on cable information loads to share pro-Trump takes that get consideration for the improper causes, Kayleigh McEnany, previously a spokesperson for the Trump 2020 marketing campaign, ought to be a pure as President Trump’s subsequent press secretary.

Information that McEnany is to grow to be Trump’s fourth press secretary was first reported by CNN on Tuesday. She is going to substitute Stephanie Grisham, who finishes her nine-month stint within the position with out ever having held a press briefing however with many Fox News appearances underneath her belt.

That didn’t occur accidentally: Trump reportedly needs his press secretaries to primarily function cable information surrogates for him. However the timing of McEnany becoming a member of the White Home has introduced current feedback she’s made concerning the coronavirus underneath renewed criticism.

“We won’t see ailments just like the coronavirus come right here”

Like many different folks within the orbit of the president, together with Trump himself, McEnany spent a lot of the interval between January and March downplaying the coronavirus — together with as late as March 11, the identical day the NBA suspended play after a participant examined constructive for the virus, changing into certainly one of greater than 1,200 individuals who had examined constructive within the US at that time.

At the moment, Trump was nonetheless planning to carry political rallies despite the fact that Nationwide Institute of Allergy and Infectious Illnesses Director Dr. Anthony Fauci had already really helpful massive gatherings not be held, saying throughout congressional testimony that “something that has massive crowds is one thing that may give a danger to unfold.”

Throughout an interview on Fox Enterprise during which host Stuart Varney grilled McEnany concerning the knowledge of continuing with rallies regardless of Fauci’s recommendation, McEnany prompt that the president — who as soon as claimed windmills trigger most cancers — knew higher than one of many nation’s high public well being specialists.

“The president is the very best authority on this concern,” she stated.

However much more egregious in hindsight have been feedback McEnany made on Trish Regan’s Fox Enterprise present on February 25. (Regan misplaced her present two weeks later following a rant the place she dismissed the rising pandemic as a “coronavirus impeachment rip-off.”)

“We won’t see ailments just like the coronavirus come right here,” McEnany stated, including, “Isn’t it refreshing when contrasting [the Trump administration’s public health efforts] with the terrible presidency of President Obama.”

The clip of McEnany saying “we won’t see ailments just like the coronavirus come right here” was not too long ago posted to Twitter by CNN editor Andrew Kaczynski. McEnany responded with a mixture of deflection, Trump reward, and assaults on the press — a mix the president appears to be a giant fan of.

When McEnany made these feedback on February 25, the US had fewer than 20 non-cruise-ship-related coronavirus instances. Sadly, in hindsight, they stand out as egregiously inaccurate. Since then, a whole bunch of hundreds of Individuals have been contaminated, and greater than 12,200 have died.

Trump expects his press secretaries to be blindly loyal. Getting issues improper appears to be no downside so long as it advances Trump’s pursuits.

When she begins on the White Home, McEnany shall be removed from the one Trump administration official who has gone viral resulting from inaccurate statements concerning the coronavirus.

As I detailed final week, 10 million unemployment claims in the past, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross claimed the coronavirus “will assist to speed up the return of jobs to North America.” In late February, White Home financial adviser Larry Kudlow stated the coronavirus was “contained” and urged traders to “purchase the dip” simply forward of the Dow dropping precipitously. On March 6, White Home senior counselor Kellyanne Conway indignantly advised reporters on the White Home that the coronavirus was being “contained.”

However McEnany surpasses all three officers in her longstanding dedication to boosting Trump’s message of the day. Her historical past of shilling for Trump goes all the best way to 2012, when she amplified the racist conspiracy theories about then-President Obama’s beginning certificates that Trump rode to political prominence.

In October 2016, McEnany additionally went to excessive lengths to defend Trump following the discharge of the Entry Hollywood scorching mic recording during which he may be heard bragging about groping girls, arguing that Trump’s remark about how “while you’re a star, they allow you to do it” is definitely proof he sought consent earlier than touching them. She’s additionally defended the whole lot from Trump’s false declare about Obama founding ISIS to his refusal to divest from his enterprise pursuits upon taking workplace.

These defenses of the president have been extensively ridiculed exterior the MAGA echo chamber. However as Sean Spicer taught us on the very first day of Trump’s presidency when he trumpeted blatant lies concerning the measurement of Trump’s inaugural crowd measurement, the job of being Trump’s press secretary is all about being keen to say regardless of the boss thinks is critical to win the second. And in that respect, McEnany has already demonstrated she’s as much as the duty.

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