Reporters raise their hands to as a question as White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

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.

File picture of Karoline Leavitt speaking to the media
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U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday (November 15, 2024) named Karoline Leavitt as White House Press Secretary.

Ms. Leavitt, 27, would replace Karine Jean-Pierre as the White House Press Secretary on January 20, 2025 when Mr. Trump takes oath as the 47th President of the United States. She was the Trump Campaign’s National Press Secretary and has previously served in the Trump White House as Assistant Press Secretary.

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Announcing her nomination, Mr. Trump said, “Leavitt did a phenomenal job as the National Press Secretary on my Historic Campaign, and I am pleased to announce she will serve as White House Press Secretary.”

“Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator,” the president-elect said.

“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,” he added.

Among other nominations announced by Mr. Trump, Steven Cheung will return to the White House as Assistant to the President and Director of Communications.

Sergio Gor will serve as Assistant to the President and Director of the Presidential Personnel Office.

“Steven Cheung and Sergio Gor have been trusted Advisors since my first Presidential Campaign in 2016, and have continued to champion America First principles throughout my First Term, all the way to our Historic Victory in 2024,” Mr. Trump said.

“I am thrilled to have them join my White House as we, Make America Great Again!” he added.

Mr. Cheung was Director of Communications on the Trump-Vance 2024 Presidential Campaign and previously served in the Trump White House as Director of Strategic Response, while Mr. Gor was the CEO of Winning Team Publishing, while also running the pro-Trump Super PAC, Right For America.

President Joe Biden called Japan and India “xenophobic” countries that do not welcome immigrants, lumping the two with adversaries China and Russia as he tried to explain the four countries’ economic circumstances and contrasted them with the U.S. on immigration at a campaign fundraiser on May 2 evening at the start of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Wednesday, May 1, 2024.
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The United States is a country of immigrants, the White House has said, defending President Joe Biden’s remarks calling two of his QUAD partners— India and Japan— as well as Russia and China “xenophobic” nations, asserting that none of these countries, unlike the U.S., welcome immigrants.

Responding to a question about the remarks made by Mr. Biden at an election fundraiser on May 2, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that the president was making a “broader point”.

“He was making a broader point. Our allies and partners know very well that — how much this president respects them,” Ms. Jean-Pierre told reporters at her daily news conference on Thursday.

“As you know, in regard to Japan, they were just here for the state visit. The U.S.-Japan relationship is an important relationship. It’s a deep, enduring alliance,” she said.

“He (Mr. Biden) was making a more broad comment, speaking about this country and speaking about how important it is to be a country of immigrants and how it makes our country stronger. And so, that’s what he was talking about,” she said.

“It relates to our relationship with our allies, that continues. We have a strong relationship with India (and) with Japan. And the President, if you just look at the last three years, has certainly focused on those diplomatic relationships,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said.

“He was talking about who we are as a country. He was talking about the importance of being in a country of immigrants, especially as you see the attacks that we have seen very recently, in the last couple of years, those attacks on immigrants, in particular,” the White House Press Secretary said, defending the president.

“The President is always going to be really clear on speaking to issues that matter to the American people. We are a country of immigrants. That matters. And we’ve seen these attacks. And so, the President is never going to shy away from that,” Ms. Jean-Pierre said.

“It is important for us to remember that we are a country of immigrants. I’m explaining what he was talking about and what he was focusing on in those comments: a country of immigrants makes us stronger. It is important to be very clear about that,” she said.

While addressing his supporters at the Democratic Party fundraiser here on May 2 evening, Mr. Biden said, “This election is about freedom, America and democracy. That’s why I badly need you. You know, one of the reasons why our economy is growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants.” “We look to — the reason — look, think about it. Why is China stalling so badly economically? Why is Japan having trouble? Why is Russia? Why is India? Because they’re xenophobic. They don’t want immigrants,” Mr. Biden, the presumptive candidate of the Democratic Party, said.

India and Japan are members of QUAD— a four-member strategic security dialogue that includes the U.S. and Australia.

Mr. Biden hosted Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a State Visit last year, while Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited the White House in April for an official visit.

Mr. Biden has been under attack from his opponents and the Republican Party for his immigration policies, as hundreds and thousands of illegal immigrants enter the United States every month.

Immigration is a hot topic in the November 5 presidential election in which Mr. Biden will face former President Donald Trump, the presumptive candidate from the Republican Party.