White House Press Office Reverts to Kindergarten

"Focus now. You ask her if we ever used the word 'ban' "Fox News

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I know you all want to be up-to-date on the latest juvenile behavior from the White House, so here you go. In the first video, Kaitlan Collins, a pool reporter from CNN, does the usual pool reporter thing:

The White House press staff was outraged by this totally normal behavior and issued a statement: “Our staff informed her she was not welcome to participate in the next event.” That seems clear enough, no? Well, no:

I’m especially amused by Shine’s condescending instruction to reporters to “focus now,” while refusing to answer any questions until they first ask Collins if Shine ever used the word “ban.” Apparently now we’re going to play some kind of White House version of Password:

“Um, forbid”

“Prohibit”

“No, like in boycott”

“Embargo.”

“No, no, um, blackball.”

“Ban.”

“Close, close, but not quite as definitive.

“Not welcome?”

“Bingo!”

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Russian bots are impersonating us. Trump and his allies want to silence us. AI wants to (and does!) steal our content. The list goes on. But with 50 years of experience, we know we were built for this moment: We’re ready to keep diving deep and uncovering the truth, then getting that to you right here, completely accessible and never behind a paywall.

While our work is free to read, watch, and listen to online, it’s incredibly costly to make. Court documents, travel, research: It all adds up. Because we’re a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on reader support to fund our investigations. Will you stand with us in these extraordinary times, as headlines clamour for our attention and disinformation is rampant? We can’t get the truth out without you.

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