Donald Trump Stealthily Departs White House For New York After Meeting With President Obama, Breaches Press Protocol
Donald Trump breached traditional press protocol expected of U.S. presidents and presidents-elect when he stealthily departed the White House in Washington, D.C. for New York on Thursday after his meeting with President Barack Obama. When a correspondent reported that Trump had already left Washington for his home in Manhattan, the update didn’t go over well with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer.
Blitzer was reporting on The Situation Room when he was told by a field journalist that Donald Trump was no longer at the White House. The CNN host was visibly irritated at Trump’s move to do things his way without notifying the “press pool” of his actions in leaving the White House.
“That’s unacceptable,” said Blitzer. “They have got to fix that.”
Blitzer once served as a White House correspondent on CNN and knows the protocol. He emphasized that a pool of reporters should always be with the president and president-elect in these circumstances.
“It is truly unacceptable,” Blitzer repeated. “The President-elect and the President. A pool of reporters should be with them on a trip like that.”
“That’s unacceptable”: CNN’s @wolfblitzer rebukes Donald Trump for breach in press protocol https://t.co/Z4VF3hEo5o pic.twitter.com/uMTQ0Jaxsk
— CNN (@CNN) November 11, 2016
Trump may not have fully understood that press protocol calls for him to alert members of the media to his movements. A similar situation occurred the same day when Donald Trump breached press protocol when he left the traveling press corps in New York. His actions didn’t go unnoticed by The White House Correspondents’ Association President Jeff Mason.
“The White House Correspondents’ Association is deeply concerned by President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to reject the practice of traveling with a ‘protective pool’ of reporters for his first visit to Washington since the election,” said Mason.
“This decision could leave Americans blind about his whereabouts and well-being in the event of a national crisis,” he continued. “Not allowing a pool of journalists to travel with and cover the next president of the United States is unacceptable.”
Donald Trump’s spokeswoman, Hope Hicks, addressed the mishap and explained in a statement that the president-elect’s team will adhere to press protocol in the future.
“We fully expect to operate a traditional pool and look forward to implementing our plans in the near future. We appreciate your patience as we navigate the transition process,” Hicks said.
ABC News reports that on Wednesday Trump was virtually out of sight after the election, but he was gathered with advisers in his New York offices. The president-elect’s team was criticized for not providing a daily schedule or any updates on where his focus was, or what the status was on phone calls with global leaders. The White House customarily releases statements on the president’s phone calls with foreign leaders that offer a glimpse into what their conversations were about. Historically, presidents-elect have briefed journalists on their communications soon after Election Day.
What the White House press corps covering Donald Trump will look like https://t.co/J6lLmGVhCY pic.twitter.com/z9LKZ0mPSg
— PRWeek US (@PRWeekUS) November 10, 2016
The meeting between President Obama and Donald Trump was covered by Obama’s pool of White House reporters, photographers, and TV journalists.
ABC News‘ report noted that when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, a pool of reporters and photographers were in the motorcade. When President Ronald Reagan was shot outside a hotel in the District of Columbia, the press pool was nearby to record the event.
Donald Trump will join a long line of presidents who have traveled with the press pool on foreign travels, vacations, and other events. They also accompany the nation’s leader to capture personal and historical moments of the presidency. The president and president-elect’s press pool are separate from the general media in that the general media isn’t privy to the secret itinerary of their movements. Roads are blocked off and press access is severely limited.
Donald Trump has had a contentious relationship with the press and this is one of many bumps in the road to come as his team navigates through the political process.
[Featured Image by Kena Betancur/Getty Images]
