By Benny Johnson, IJR:
The animosity between the press and President Trump has reached a fever pitch in recent days. Much of the grudge match stems from access, or lack thereof, between the President and the press.
This week, there was an outcry from journalists as White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer hand selected certain outlets to join him in an off camera press conference. Trump regularly shucks his pool reporters, the members of the White House press designated to cover his every movement, so he can dine or golf in privacy. The practice of ditching the press pool is not exclusive to Trump, but highly controversial and frowned upon in journalist circles.
Last night, Trump went dark on the press again, leaving the White House with a pool reporter in tow who did not know where the President was going or what he was doing. From last night’s report:
Pool was escorted onto the South Lawn driveway at 7:32 PM, where we boarded vans in the presidential motorcade. Motorcade rolled out from the WH grounds at 8:14 PM. Destination unknown. POTUS has no public events on his schedule today.
The president was heading to his new flagship property in D.C., the Trump Hotel, for a private dinner at the BLT Steakhouse inside. Once the president arrived at the location, the reporter who was on assignment to cover him, Jordan Fabian of The Hill, was not let into the building and had to wait in the van outside for the remainder of the dinner, without a guest list or details of what was happening inside.
Inside the restaurant, I was seated at a table which I had booked hours earlier, directly next to where Trump would be dining…
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