The Playbook Podcast April 25, 2025: The Karoline Leavitt effect
Apr 25, 2025
Adam Wren, POLITICO's National Politics Correspondent, joins to dissect the changing dynamics at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. He highlights the unique challenges of press relations under the current administration, focusing on White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt's pivotal role. The discussion reveals how her influence marks a shift towards confrontational media practices, with the briefing room becoming more of a battleground than a forum for dialogue, raising pressing concerns about press freedom in this new era.
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Shift in Correspondents' Dinner Tone
- The annual White House Correspondents' Dinner mood is much more somber and focused on press freedom than in previous years.
- The press is under increased attack, changing the event's tone from celebration to defense of the First Amendment.
Karoline Leavitt's Early Trump Encounter
- Karoline Leavitt asked Donald Trump a question at a 2015 town hall as a fresh high school graduate.
- Trump praised her candor and described himself as a nice guy contrasting with the "stupid people running the government."
Briefing Room as MAGA Theater
- The White House briefing room is no longer primarily for informing reporters but is a platform to perform for the MAGA base.
- This shift has made relations with the mainstream press toxic and combative.