Former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Friday that she is “relentlessly” attacked by women during her debut as a Fox News contributor.
Sanders made the comment during her appearance on “Fox & Friends” on Friday morning after she was pressed by co-host Steve Doocy about whether she still receives criticism when she goes out in public.
{mosads}”When you were White House press secretary, famously, you know, being [President Trump’s] spokesperson, you were thrown out of that restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, the Red Hen. They have kind of, I think that impacted their business for a little while. You’re out of the administration now. Are you still taking heat when you go out to eat?” Doocy asked.
“Sometimes. You know, it usually depends on where I am in the country. Back home in Arkansas, things have been so far pretty easy and very welcoming,” she began, before adding: “But every once in a while, you always have somebody who comes up to say something nasty to you.”
“Like what,” Doocy asked.
“What I always find interesting is 99 percent of the people who come over to say something negative, and to attack you, are women. And I find that very startling from a group of people that claim to be the champions of women empowerment,” Sanders said.
“I am only the third woman and the first mom to ever be the White House press secretary,” she continued. “And yet women attack me relentlessly, instead of being proud that we have more women doing those types of jobs.”
“Do you ever say that to them?” co-host Ainsley Earhardt asked.
“Sometimes. But, usually, what they’re looking for is a reaction. So, I always find it’s best to nod, smile and say thank you for your time and walk on,” Sanders said.
“But you’re out of the administration,” Doocy said.
“I am,” Sanders replied. “But they still see me as a somebody who is a very pro-Trump supporter. I’m not gonna change my position. It would be very odd to go from doing what I was doing to all of the sudden doing something different. I loved my experience. I loved working for the president.”
Sanders resigned from her post at the White House in June after serving in the role for almost two years. Much of her time in the position was marked by tensions between her and the press corps at the daily news briefings at the White House, which were also put to a halt under her tenure.