White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Wednesday said that “so-called leakers” in the West Wing should be fired.
During an interview on Fox News, Sanders called it “disgusting” and “disloyal” to reveal internal discussions to the news media and said the White House is “focused intensely” on putting a stop to the practice.
“We fired people over leaking before — I’ve personally fired people over leaking before — and we certainly would be very willing to do so again,” Sanders told the hosts of “Fox & Friends,” one of President Trump’s favorite television shows.
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The White House has come under intense scrutiny for its handling of comments made by special assistant Kelly Sadler, who said it does not matter if Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) supports Trump’s CIA nominee because “he’s dying anyway.”
Sadler’s derisive remarks, which were first reported by The Hill, came last Thursday during a closed-door meeting of the White House communications staff.
Trump and his staff are facing calls from members of Congress to publicly apologize for Sadler’s comments, but Sanders and others have indicated there will be no such apology.
The White House has placed much greater emphasis on how Sadler’s comments became public rather than the content of her remarks.
Trump took to Twitter on Monday to label people who disclose information as “traitors and cowards” and suggested there is an investigation underway into who in the White House is sharing private conversations with the press.
Sanders’s comments echo those made by White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, who said Monday she expects staff changes as a result of last week’s report.
The White House has said on multiple occasions, however, that Sadler remains in her job while “so-called leakers,” as Trump referred to them in a tweet, are being hunted down.