White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt watches as President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House, in Washington.
| Photo Credit: AP
Karoline Leavitt, the youngest person to serve as White House press secretary, will make her debut in the briefing room on Tuesday.
Her first briefing is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
The James S. Brady Press Briefing Room was the site of clashes between spokespeople and journalists during President Donald Trump’s first term. Trump, a Republican, also made frequent appearances there himself during the coronavirus outbreak.
It’s unclear how often Leavitt, 27, plans to hold briefings. Mr. Trump had four press secretaries during his first administration, Sean Spicer, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Stephanie Grisham and Kayleigh McEnany, and Grisham never held a briefing, while the others were more frequent presences behind the podium.
Ms. Leavitt was a spokesperson for Trump’s campaign and transition, and he said she did “a phenomenal job” when he announced in November that she’d be his White House press secretary.
“Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator,” he said then in a statement. “I have the utmost confidence she will excel at the podium, and help deliver our message to the American People as we Make America Great Again.” Previously, the youngest press secretary was Ronald Ziegler, who was 29 when he took the position in 1969 in Richard Nixon’s administration.
Grisham was arguably the nation’s least visible press secretary in modern history, not holding a press briefing during nine months on the job. While she made occasional appearances on the Fox News Channel, she preferred to tape her interviews in a studio to avoid having to speak to reporters who gather on the White House driveway to interview officials after they appear on TV via cameras set up outside the executive mansion.
Published – January 28, 2025 06:34 pm IST
