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NoticiasTranscripción
00:00Good afternoon, everybody.
00:04How are we today?
00:06Good.
00:07During his inaugural address, President Trump
00:09promised that America would be a manufacturing
00:12nation once again, and liberal pundits mocked him
00:15for it.
00:16But those critics were proven wrong once again.
00:19On the heels of President Trump's Oval Office
00:21meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook last week, Apple just
00:25announced its largest-ever commitment to American
00:28jobs in industry, with plans to spend and invest
00:31more than $500 billion in America over the next four
00:35years.
00:36Over the course of the current Trump
00:38administration, Apple plans to hire around 20,000
00:41new workers, creating high-paying jobs right
00:44here in America.
00:46And the investment isn't limited to one specific
00:49region of our country.
00:50Apple teams and facilities will expand all over our
00:53country, in Arizona, California, Iowa, Nevada,
00:57North Carolina, Michigan, Oregon, Texas, and
01:01Washington.
01:02With President Trump in charge, America is open
01:05for business.
01:06Apple CEO Tim Cook said it best in the company's
01:09announcement,
01:10We are bullish on the future of American
01:13innovation.
01:14On top of this incredible Apple announcement,
01:16President Trump already announced more than $1
01:19trillion in pledged investments into the
01:21United States.
01:23And on another important note that the American
01:25people entrusted President Trump to fulfill, this
01:28administration's efforts to seal the border
01:30continue to prove extraordinarily successful.
01:34In President Trump's first month back in office
01:36alone, illegal border crossings hit lows not
01:39seen in decades, down 94 percent over the past year,
01:44while interior arrests are up 134 percent.
01:48And this past Saturday, this is a significant
01:51statistic that I wanted to share with all of you.
01:53There were only 220 illegal border crossings
01:57on Saturday.
01:58This is a 15-year low.
02:02Think about that in comparison to the amount
02:04of illegal border crossings we saw under
02:06the previous administration.
02:08Fox recently reported that a San Diego migrant
02:11shelter is closing its doors after saying they
02:13have not received new asylum-seeking families or
02:16individuals since January 20th.
02:19We all know what happened on January 20th, don't we?
02:22And yesterday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams
02:24announced that the massive Roosevelt Hotel migrant
02:27shelter in Manhattan will shut down in the next few months.
02:31We're also seeing a reverse migration effect.
02:34There are now verified reports from the
02:36Associated Press of migrants abandoning their
02:39journey to the United States and heading back home.
02:42This is the first time the Border Patrol has received
02:45these reports since 2020, during President Trump's
02:48first term.
02:50The returning migrants claimed in interviews that
02:52the new heavy security posture adopted by the
02:54Trump administration was a significant reason for
02:57their decision to return to the countries of their origin.
03:01Overall, the American people continue to
03:04overwhelmingly give President Trump very
03:06positive remarks.
03:08Nearly every one of President Trump's policy
03:11initiatives are receiving strong majority support.
03:15And I have noted that in every briefing since
03:17Inauguration Day.
03:18Eighty-one percent of Americans support
03:21deporting illegal migrant criminals from our
03:24nation's interior.
03:25Seventy-six percent of Americans support the
03:28DOJ-led efforts of a full-scale investigation
03:32to find and eliminate fraud and waste in
03:34government expenditures.
03:36Again, this is from a Harvard-Harris poll, a
03:38very legitimate pollster.
03:40Seventy-six percent of Americans support closing
03:42the border.
03:44Sixty-nine percent of Americans support
03:46President Trump's common-sense efforts to
03:48ban men from women's sports.
03:50As you all know, we celebrated that executive
03:52order at the White House a couple of weeks ago.
03:55Sixty-five percent of Americans support the
03:57President's efforts to eliminate all preferences
03:59by race in the hiring and awarding of government
04:02contracts, which is another pledge that DOJ is
04:05working hard to fulfill.
04:07And 61 percent of Americans, vast majority,
04:10support the President's plan for reciprocal
04:12tariffs to ensure that other countries are
04:14treating us the way we have always been treated.
04:18Despite what many Democrats and media
04:19members want you to believe, the Trump agenda
04:22is not only necessary, but it is
04:24overwhelmingly popular.
04:27Why?
04:28Because it's driven by common sense.
04:31And finally, as you all saw yesterday, a federal
04:34judge denied the Associated Press' emergency
04:37motion for a temporary restraining order against
04:40myself, our Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich,
04:44and our Chief of Staff Susie Wiles for our
04:46decision to remove the Associated Press from the
04:49White House press pool for certain and special events.
04:52The judge's ruling, upholding our decision
04:55to deny the Associated Press such privileged
04:58access, reinforces the truth.
05:01And it reiterates what I said from this podium last
05:04week when that suit was filed.
05:06Asking the President of the United States
05:08questions in limited spaces, such as the Oval
05:11Office in Air Force One, is a privilege that,
05:14unfortunately, has only been granted to a few.
05:17It is not a legal right for all.
05:21The Trump administration has already proven to be
05:23the most transparent ever, and this President the
05:27most accessible in history.
05:29This is evidenced by President Trump's daily
05:31press conferences in the Oval Office, where he
05:33takes many questions from the journalists who have
05:36the honor and privilege of standing before the
05:38beautiful Resolute Desk.
05:40The President and this entire White House are
05:43committed to ensuring the American people continue
05:47to receive this same level of historic
05:50transparency, access, and visibility.
05:53In fact, we want to double down and give even greater
05:57access to the American people.
05:59We want more outlets and new outlets to have a
06:02chance to take part in the press pool to cover this
06:06administration's unprecedented achievements
06:08up close, front, and center.
06:11As you all know, for decades, a group of D.C.-
06:14based journalists, the White House Correspondents
06:16Association, has long dictated which journalists
06:19get to ask questions of the President of the United
06:22States in these most intimate spaces.
06:25Not anymore.
06:27I am proud to announce that we are going to give
06:29the power back to the people who read your
06:31papers, who watch your television shows, and who
06:34listen to your radio stations.
06:36Moving forward, the White House press pool will be
06:39determined by the White House press team.
06:41Legacy outlets who have participated in the press
06:44pool for decades will still be allowed to join,
06:47fear not, but we will also be offering the privilege
06:50to well-deserving outlets who have never been allowed
06:53to share in this awesome responsibility.
06:57Just like we added a new media seat in this
06:59briefing room, legacy media outlets who have been
07:02here for years will still participate in the pool,
07:05but new voices are going to be welcomed in as well.
07:09As part of these changes, we will continue the
07:11rotation amongst the five major television networks
07:14to ensure the President's remarks are heard far and
07:17wide around this world.
07:19We will add additional streaming services which
07:21reach different audiences than traditional cable
07:24and broadcast.
07:25This is the ever-changing landscape of the media in
07:28the United States today.
07:29We will continue to rotate a print pooler who has the
07:32great responsibility of quickly transcribing the
07:35President's remarks and disseminating them to the
07:38rest of the world.
07:39And we will add outlets to the print pool rotation who
07:41have long been denied the privilege to partake in
07:44this experience, but are committed to covering this
07:47White House beat.
07:49We will continue to rotate a radio pooler and add
07:52other radio hosts who have been denied access,
07:54especially local radio hosts who serve as the
07:57heartbeat of our country.
07:59And we will add additional outlets and
08:01reporters who are well-suited to cover the
08:03news of the day and ask substantive questions of
08:06the President of the United States, depending on the
08:08news he is making on that given day.
08:11This administration is shaking up Washington in
08:13more ways than one.
08:15That's what we were elected to do.
08:17As I have said since the first day behind this
08:19podium, it's beyond time that the White House press
08:21operation reflects the media habits of the
08:24American people in 2025, not 1925.
08:29A select group of D.C.-based journalists
08:31should no longer have a monopoly over the privilege
08:33of press access at the White House.
08:36All journalists, outlets, and voices deserve a seat
08:39at this highly coveted table.
08:42So by deciding which outlets make up the
08:44limited press pool on a day-to-day basis, the
08:46White House will be restoring power back to
08:49the American people who President Trump was
08:51elected to serve.
08:53So in that note, in our new media seat today, we
08:55have Shelby Talcott, who is a White House reporter
08:58for Semaphore.
08:59In 2022, Semaphore launched as a global
09:02digital news platform with the aim of bringing
09:04meaningful innovations to the news industry.
09:07Today, they have nearly 1 million newsletter
09:09subscribers, spanning 11 separate editions.
09:14With that, Shelby, I will take your questions.
09:16The Press Thank you, Caroline.
09:17I've got two for you, one on foreign policy.
09:19Over the weekend, the President's Special
09:21Missions Envoy, Rick Grinnell, was talking
09:24about Venezuela, and he said that the President
09:26isn't someone who wants regime change.
09:28Other administration officials have made clear
09:30that they don't see Maduro as the rightful leader.
09:33What is this administration's policy on
09:36a new government in Venezuela?
09:37Ms. McEnany I think the President has made his
09:39position on Venezuela quite clear.
09:41He stands in opposition to the Maduro regime, and
09:44Secretary Rubio has spoken on this extensively as well.
09:46The Press And then on Doge, last night, Elon Musk
09:49said that a failure to respond a second time will
09:52result in termination.
09:54Will there be additional rounds of the
09:56What-Did-You-Do-This-Week email from Doge to
09:59federal workers?
10:00And what's the guidance on the federal workers who
10:04have been instructed by their agencies not to reply?
10:07Ms. McEnany So, a couple of things on this.
10:10First of all, let's just take a step back and talk
10:12about this idea.
10:14The President sent out a truth last weekend to
10:16Elon Musk, saying he loves everything Elon is doing,
10:19and he wants him to be even more aggressive
10:21because Doge thus far has proven incredibly
10:24successful in making our government more efficient.
10:27And so Elon and Doge came up with this idea.
10:30Elon has implemented this at his private companies.
10:32It has proven successful.
10:34And it's a very simple idea when you think about it.
10:36All the Office of Personnel Management is
10:38asking, all this administration is asking,
10:40President Trump is asking, is for federal workers who
10:44live off of the American taxpayer's dime to send
10:47five bullet points of what they have done in the
10:49previous week.
10:51That is all we are asking for.
10:52And so, the Office of Personnel and Management
10:54sent out additional guidance last night.
10:57Those responses should be directed to agency
10:59leadership, and the President defers to his
11:01Cabinet Secretaries, who he's obviously entrusted,
11:05to pursue the guidance relative to their
11:07specific workforce.
11:08And for some of the agencies that you've seen
11:10who have said, please don't send these emails, it's
11:12in their best interest for that specific agency, and
11:15the President supports that.
11:16And let me be very clear, the President and Elon,
11:19as his entire Cabinet, are working as one unified
11:22team, and they are implementing these very
11:24common-sense solutions.
11:26You're welcome.
11:27Jackie.
11:27The Press.
11:29One follow-up question.
11:30So, about the deadline, Alina Haba said that you
11:33have until tonight.
11:35Elon Musk said a failure to respond a second time
11:37would result in termination.
11:39So, is that a real deadline?
11:42Should federal workers be looking to that guidance,
11:45or should they be looking to the agency heads?
11:48Like, what is the actual deadline?
11:50So, again, the agency heads will determine the best
11:53practices for their employees at their
11:56specific agencies.
11:57Again, this was an idea that Elon come up with.
12:00DOJ worked with OPM to actually implement the
12:03idea, and the Secretaries are responsible for their
12:05specific workforce.
12:06And this is true of the hirings and the firings
12:09that have taken place.
12:10And we advise federal workers, unless your
12:13agency has dictated you not to, to respond to this email.
12:17In fact, I can announce that we've had more than
12:191 million workers who have chosen to participate in
12:22this very simple task of, again, sending five bullet
12:26points to your direct supervisor or manager,
12:28CCing OPM.
12:30I actually participated in it myself.
12:32It took me about a minute and a half to think of
12:34five things I did last week.
12:36I do five things in about 10 minutes.
12:37And all federal workers should be working at the
12:39same pace that President Trump is working and moving.
12:42We have a country to save, and we want this federal
12:45government to be responsive to the needs of
12:47the American people who reelected this President to
12:49have historic, massive reform.
12:51And that's what the intention of this idea is.
12:53The Press.
12:54The Press.
12:54Can you clarify one thing, though?
12:55Because Elon Musk also said that a reason that
12:56they wanted this five-things email was just
12:58to see if people are actually alive, citing
13:01that there are some federal workers who might
13:02not even be alive.
13:04So, meantime, NBC is reporting that these
13:07responses are going to go into an AI generator to
13:09evaluate whether these jobs are necessary.
13:12So is it just to see if people are actually
13:15working, or is it an effort to maybe cut
13:17some of those jobs?
13:18Ms. McEnany.
13:19I have not seen that NBC News report, and I haven't
13:21heard that from Doge or from Elon himself.
13:24Again, this is to ensure that federal workers are
13:26not ripping off American taxpayers, that they are
13:29showing up to the office, and that they are doing
13:31their jobs.
13:32That's what the American people expect.
13:34And it's a very simple task to complete.
13:36I did it myself, and I was more than happy to do it
13:38because I'm very grateful that I am serving the
13:40American people on the American taxpayers' dime.
13:42The Press.
13:43I hired a spokesperson just so that Elon Musk
13:45doesn't put out tweets that then confuse
13:47federal workers.
13:48Are my press briefings not good enough for you,
13:50Jackie?
13:50John.
13:52Carol, thank you.
13:52In the ruling by Judge McFadden yesterday, who
13:57dismissed the lawsuit that AP brought against
14:00yourself and your team members here, President
14:05Trump, in there, he said, why not just do away with
14:08the entire White House Correspondents Association
14:12along with it?
14:13Because essentially, they have no authority.
14:16They just usurped it.
14:18What is your reaction to that?
14:19Well, first of all, John, it's great to see you.
14:21And you are one of those individuals who has a
14:25you're on a streaming platform that hundreds of
14:27thousands of people tune into every day.
14:29So it's great to see you in the briefing room.
14:31I did address that, actually, in my opening
14:33remarks by announcing that the White House press
14:35team in this administration will determine who gets
14:38to enjoy the very privileged and limited
14:41access in spaces such as Air Force One and the
14:44Oval Office.
14:45There are, as you know, look at this room,
14:47hundreds of journalists who show up to this
14:49building every single day and are not granted that
14:52luxury of flying on Air Force One and asking the
14:54President of the United States questions.
14:56And so we want to ensure, again, everyone has a seat
14:58at that highly coveted table.
15:00But alas, the legacy media outlets who have been
15:02doing this for quite some time and have invested
15:04resources into covering the White House, their
15:07spots will remain, just like they have in this
15:08briefing room as well.
15:10Sure.
15:10Steve.
15:11Can you give us an update on the negotiations
15:13around the Ukraine minerals deal?
15:14And when is President Zelensky going to come visit?
15:18So the President talked at length about this
15:20yesterday, the critical minerals deal with
15:22President Macron.
15:23And in the more than hour-long press
15:25conference he gave all of you in the Oval Office
15:27himself, there hasn't been significant updates since
15:30the President's remarks last night.
15:32But I will just reiterate his position.
15:34It's critical that this deal is signed.
15:36He expects President Zelensky to sign a deal.
15:39This is to recoup American tax dollars that have
15:43been funding Ukraine's national defense.
15:45And it's also great for the Ukrainian people who
15:47have been put through hell because of this war.
15:49And it will create a lasting economic
15:51partnership as Ukraine will need to rebuild their
15:54country because of this brutal war.
15:56And just to follow up, has Steve Whitkoff delayed
15:58his trip to the Middle East so he can concentrate
16:00on this minerals deal?
16:02I don't want to comment on Mr. Whitkoff's travel
16:04plans or read anything out just for obvious reasons.
16:08But he remains very much working.
16:10That man is working around the clock to secure this
16:13deal with Russia and Ukraine, alongside
16:15Secretary Rubio and Secretary Besant,
16:17General Keith Kellogg.
16:18He's also working very hard to secure a peace
16:20deal in the Middle East as well.
16:22So, God bless him.
16:23And he's working alongside the President
16:25every single day.
16:26Sure.
16:27The Press The President's executive order creating
16:31DOJ called for the naming of a DOJ administrator.
16:35Who is the DOJ administrator?
16:36Ms. McEnany So, the President tasked Elon
16:38Musk to oversee the DOJ effort.
16:41There are career officials and there are political
16:43appointees who are helping run DOJ on a
16:47day-to-day basis.
16:48There are also individuals who have
16:50onboarded as political appointees at every agency
16:53across the board to work alongside President
16:55Trump's Cabinet to find and identify waste,
16:58fraud, and abuse.
16:59And they are working on that effort every day.
17:01Reagan.
17:01The Press So, is Elon Musk the administrator?
17:02Ms. McEnany Reagan.
17:03The Press Thanks, Caroline.
17:04I have two for you today, one on the border wall and
17:06one on the DHS investigation.
17:08First, on the border wall, border wall
17:12construction has restarted in Texas and California
17:15under contracts awarded under Trump's first term.
17:19Is the President looking to secure new contracts?
17:21And how is he defining success in terms of
17:24border wall construction this administration?
17:26Ms. McEnany The border wall is a signature promise of
17:29President Trump's campaign.
17:30He talked about it way back in 2015 and 2016, and
17:35people laughed at him for bringing up this idea.
17:37It's proven to be not only an idea that he
17:40delivered on in his first term and continues to
17:42deliver on in his second term, but it's also
17:44proven to be highly effective.
17:46In fact, we know where there were parts of
17:49President Trump's border wall built and standing
17:51under the previous administration, illegal
17:53border crossings dropped 87 percent where there
17:57was a border wall.
17:58So, the wall is an incredible deterrent
18:00factor for illegal migrant caravans.
18:02The President is committed to the continuation of
18:05the construction of the wall.
18:07And, you know, the previous administration
18:09actually sold off the resources that the Trump
18:11administration secured to build the wall, and
18:14that's an egregious misuse of the American
18:16taxpayer's money.
18:17They just let those resources rot on the
18:19southern border.
18:20They actually sold them for pennies on the dollar.
18:22So, this administration, DHS, and ICE, and
18:26Customs and Border Patrol, and Tom Homan, and all
18:29of the great people you know who are working on
18:30this effort, are committed to continuing the
18:32construction of President Trump's border wall.
18:34The Press.
18:35On the DHS investigation into people who might be
18:37leaking within the administration, will the
18:40White House release the names of the individuals
18:42that DHS Secretary Noem said were caught leaking
18:45details of the ICE raid?
18:46And can you share how many leakers have been caught
18:48so far and what agency they were a part of?
18:50Ms. McEnany I would defer you to DHS on the
18:53leakers that they have identified, but I know
18:55the President and this White House commend
18:57Secretary Noem for launching an internal
19:00investigation to identify those leakers because
19:03it's unacceptable for career bureaucrats who
19:06are standing in the way of the will of the American
19:08people and enacting President Trump's agenda.
19:11If they don't want to adhere to the will of the
19:1477 million Americans who reelected President Trump,
19:17then they should go find another job.
19:19And if they continue to leak information,
19:20especially information that is critical to
19:23protecting Border Patrol agents and ICE agents who
19:25are out there doing jobs that not many people are
19:29willing to do, putting their lives on the line
19:31to protect our national security, then those
19:33individuals absolutely should be fired.
19:36And this administration is committed to finding them.
19:39The Press Sure.
19:40Caroline, two questions for you.
19:42One related to Guantanamo Bay, the other to the
19:44White House Correspondents Center.
19:46I wanted to get your response to some Washington
19:48Post reporting of the migrants who have stayed
19:50over at Guantanamo Bay for the last two weeks.
19:52They told the Post they were rarely let outside.
19:55They were shackled and placed in what they
19:57described as cages, and alleged that they were not
19:59treated as human beings.
20:01Does the White House have any response to those conditions?
20:03Ms. McEnany A Guantanamo Bay?
20:05It's a promise the President campaigned on,
20:08that if you invade our nation's borders, if you
20:10break our country's laws, and if then you further
20:13commit heinous, brutal crimes in the interior of
20:16our country, like raping and murdering innocent,
20:19law-abiding women and girls, and committing
20:22heinous acts of violence, then you are going to be
20:24deported from this country and you may be held
20:27at Guantanamo Bay.
20:28These are criminals we are talking about.
20:30Don't forget that.
20:31Sure.
20:32The Press So U.S.
20:34consumer confidence fell this month, the most since
20:37August of 2021.
20:38What is your message for Americans who are
20:41concerned about the impact of things such as
20:43terrorists on prices?
20:44Ms. McEnany Yeah, sure.
20:46Well, thank you for that question.
20:47It's obviously an important one.
20:48The President campaigned on reigniting the Trump
20:51economy and fixing the mess that was created by
20:54the previous administration.
20:56We know they created an economic and an inflation
20:58nightmare for the American people, and I'm not going
21:01to stand up here and lie to you, like my predecessor
21:03did, about the state of our economy.
21:05We understand there are people that are hurting.
21:07And this administration is wholeheartedly committed
21:10to ensuring that those individuals see relief in
21:13price reductions, in tax cuts, and in less
21:17regulations that are burdensome on their
21:19household and their businesses.
21:21And the President and this entire administration are
21:24focused on that every day.
21:25I can go through the very long list of economic
21:27actions this President has taken.
21:29I know you work for Bloomberg, so I'm sure
21:30you're well aware of them.
21:31But I can assure the American people that the
21:33President is very much focused on bringing down
21:36the cost-of-living crisis in this country that was
21:39created by the previous administration.
21:41The Press Sure.
21:41I just have a quick follow-up.
21:43Is the President planning on whipping any votes for
21:46support for the House budget vote?
21:49And if so, to whom is he making calls?
21:52Ms. Sanders I'm not aware of any calls that he has made.
21:54I did talk to the President about his
21:56position on this just before coming down here.
21:59And he said that he's made it very clear to the
22:03Hill what his priorities for a budget are.
22:06He's said it to the Speaker of the House.
22:08He said it to Leader Thune.
22:10The Senate and the House know what President Trump
22:13want and know what the American people want.
22:15And so he expects Congress to get it done.
22:17He's looking at the proposal from the House.
22:19He will also be looking at the proposal that I
22:21believe the Senate is drafting up as well.
22:24Sure.
22:25The Press Thank you, Caroline.
22:27I have two questions.
22:29Does the United States — I'm sorry, I'll get it.
22:39Ms. Sanders Well, why don't you identify your
22:40question, and I'll come back to you.
22:42The Press Caroline, can I follow up with a back
22:43question?
22:44Ms. Sanders Sure, go ahead.
22:45The Press Thank you.
22:45So, what guarantee that Israel will withdraw from
22:48Lebanon's soil after two weeks, as the ceasefire
22:51terms, like, indicates?
22:53Ms. Sanders I'm not sure about the guarantee that
22:56you're referring to.
22:57I can tell you that this administration remains
23:00very much engaged.
23:01We know the deadline for the phase one ceasefire is
23:05imminent.
23:05So, Steve Woodcock, whom I mentioned earlier, and
23:08the President's administration and his
23:10team and the President himself remain very much
23:11engaged.
23:12We want to see the ceasefire continue, and
23:14the President has made it very clear he wants to see
23:16all of the hostages who have been held in
23:18captivity in Gaza returned home.
23:21Jeff.
23:21The Press Caroline, I was wondering if — is Elon
23:23Musk going to attend the President's first Cabinet
23:25meeting tomorrow?
23:26Ms. Sanders He is, as a matter of fact.
23:28I spoke to the President about that before coming
23:29down here as well.
23:31And Elon, considering he is working alongside the
23:33President and our Cabinet Secretaries, this entire
23:38administration will be in attendance tomorrow just
23:40to talk about DOJ's efforts and how all of the
23:43Cabinet Secretaries are identifying waste, fraud,
23:45and abuse at their respective agencies.
23:47We look forward to the meeting tomorrow, and I
23:49think you'll be hearing from the President and his
23:51Cabinet.
23:51We're there on campus tomorrow.
23:52I hope you guys are excited.
23:53The Press So some of those Cabinet members were caught
23:56off guard by the email from Saturday.
23:58Ms. Sanders Nobody was caught off guard.
24:00The Press A few departments said they were
24:01caught off guard.
24:02The FBI was.
24:03The DOJ was.
24:04The Department of Defense was.
24:04Ms. Sanders Did anonymous sources say that, or did
24:06the Cabinet Secretary say that?
24:07The Press The Cabinet Secretaries and others
24:09have said that they were not aware that this was
24:11happening.
24:12So I'm wondering, like, will there be a give-and-take
24:13tomorrow at the Cabinet meeting?
24:15Is Elon Musk or the President open to any type
24:18of dialogue about who is actually in charge of the
24:22chain of command of these workers?
24:23Ms. Sanders I would reject the premise of your
24:25question, Jeff.
24:26The Cabinet Secretaries have not said that.
24:28I know anonymous sources, probably career
24:30bureaucrats, have leaked that to many of you in
24:31this room.
24:32But as I said at the beginning of this press
24:34conference, everybody is working as one team.
24:36And the President respects the decisions of his
24:39Cabinet Secretaries to tell his staff, their staff,
24:42not to respond to that email, because they did
24:44so out of interest of national security.
24:46And they don't want to, obviously, risk
24:48confidential information.
24:49It's pretty common sense.
24:50Dasha.
24:51The Press You're like, Musk has obviously been
24:53doing a lot of work.
24:54He's been working every day and, a lot of the time,
24:56weekends.
24:57He is designated as a special government
25:00employee, which means that he can only work 130
25:04days per year.
25:05Is the White House expecting him to limit his
25:08work to 130 days, or are you going to work around
25:11those rules?
25:11Or do you want to see him extend beyond the 130 days?
25:14Ms. Sanders So, today is February 25th, so I think
25:17we've been here about 35 days, roughly.
25:20So, ask me in another 100 days.
25:22Daniel.
25:23The Press Caroline, thank you.
25:24You opened up with the major announcement from
25:26Apple, $500 billion, 20,000 jobs, doubling its
25:30advanced manufacturing fund.
25:32What does that signal that such a global brand would
25:36make what it called its largest-ever spend
25:38commitment just a month into President Trump's
25:40second term?
25:41And what does that signal about his economic vision
25:43for the country?
25:44Ms. Sanders President Trump is a dealmaker, and he
25:46has restored confidence in business leaders around
25:49this entire world.
25:51Apple is one of the largest companies on the
25:53face of the planet.
25:54They employ hundreds of thousands of Americans,
25:57but the President wants to see more Americans
25:59employed, more investments here in the United States
26:01of America.
26:02And this is another fulfillment of the
26:04President's campaign promises.
26:06I recall President Trump, at his rallies on the
26:08campaign, telling the world that, if and when I
26:11am elected, America is going to be back, and we
26:14want your investments to be driven onshore.
26:17We want you to hire American workers, and you
26:19will have the lowest regulatory burden, the
26:22lowest tax cuts.
26:23And the President has already proven he's
26:24committed to slashing regulation.
26:26He's counting on Congress to implement those tax
26:29cuts.
26:29And so people are encouraged by the
26:31President's — again, as Tim Cook called it, they're
26:34bullish about American innovation because of the
26:37leadership of this President.
26:38And it's a stark contrast to the leadership of the
26:41previous administration, Joe Biden, who I don't
26:43think spent any time trying to recruit any
26:45investments or jobs here at home.
26:48Mary.
26:49The Press.
26:49We're hearing from some Republicans who are
26:51voicing concerns about how these cuts are being
26:53carried out.
26:54Congressman McCormack, a Republican from Georgia,
26:57tells us he's worried it's too rapid for real people
26:59to adapt to.
27:00And he says he's concerned that it could come off as
27:02discompassionate, in his words, that it could risk
27:05undercutting the strong message that he feels
27:07you're trying to send about the need to cut
27:08government waste.
27:09Ms. McEnany.
27:10Well, I think that that was one comment from one
27:12senator.
27:13And I think, as I cited in my opening remarks in the
27:15poll, the most important people are the American
27:18people.
27:19And 77 percent of Americans at home support a full
27:23investigation into the waste, fraud, and abuse
27:26that the federal government has been
27:28spending their tax dollars on.
27:29So that's the people the President cares about most.
27:33And that's why we're fulfilling this pledge.
27:34And, again, it should come as no secret to anybody
27:36the President campaigned on doing this.
27:38The Press The President yesterday said, if you
27:40don't respond to this email, you will be fired
27:41or semi-fired.
27:42What is it — what does he mean by that?
27:44Ms. McEnany Again, I've been asked to answer this
27:46question three times now.
27:47It is —
27:47The Press Semi-fired.
27:48What does that mean?
27:49Ms. McEnany But it's — but it's in the memo.
27:50The President, again, has entrusted his Cabinet
27:53Secretaries to oversee their workforce.
27:55That's why he nominated them to be Cabinet
27:57Secretaries.
27:58And so federal workers can be directed to their
28:03agency leadership.
28:04The Press Sure.
28:05The Press Great.
28:07Thanks, Caroline.
28:07I wanted to ask about — a federal judge yesterday
28:10was saying that they didn't know who the DOJ
28:13administrator was and was asking the lawyer for the
28:17administration who it was, and the lawyer responded,
28:19I don't know the answer to that.
28:21Can you tell us who the administrator of DOJ is?
28:23Ms. McEnany Again, I've been asked to answer
28:24this question.
28:25Elon Musk is overseeing DOJ.
28:27There are career —
28:28The Press He's the administrator.
28:28Ms. McEnany There are — no.
28:30Elon Musk is a special government employee,
28:32which I've also been asked and have answered that
28:33question as well.
28:35There are career officials at DOJ.
28:37There are political appointees at DOJ.
28:39I'm not going to reveal the name of that
28:41individual from this podium.
28:43I'm happy to follow up and provide that to you, but
28:47we've been incredibly transparent about the way
28:48that DOJ is working.
28:49John.
28:50The Press Thanks a lot, Caroline.
28:54Since your last briefing, there have been some
28:56personnel moves that have been announced by the
28:58President, and I wanted to ask you about them.
29:00One was the President replacing the chairman of
29:04the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General C.Q.
29:06Brown, Jr.
29:07What was the reason for the President naming a
29:11replacement for General Brown?
29:13And then I'll follow up with another personnel
29:15announcement that's been made over the last few days.
29:17Ms. McEnany He thinks he's doing a bad job, and it's
29:19time for a shakeup at the Pentagon.
29:21They failed seven audits in a row.
29:23The trust in our United States military amongst
29:25the warfighters is low.
29:27The President is shaking up the Pentagon and the
29:30Department of Defense, of course, with Secretary
29:32Hegseth leading, and he has the right to do that.
29:35It's actually quite common from administration to
29:37administration to do such a thing.
29:39The Press The President, when he swore him in as
29:42the Chief of Staff for the Air Force, called him a
29:45great man and a great gentleman.
29:47Does he distance himself from the remarks that he
29:50made back in August of 2020?
29:51Ms. McEnany I think replacing him speaks for
29:53itself.
29:54James.
29:54The Press There's one other one, if I'm
29:56certain.
29:57On the FBI, the President also announced a new
30:01Deputy Director of the FBI, Dan Bongino.
30:05From what has been reported — and maybe this is not
30:08accurate reporting, you can tell me — the FBI
30:10Director, Kash Patel, informed Republican
30:14senators that it would be an individual named as the
30:18deputy who was a special agent currently at the
30:21FBI.
30:22And, of course, Mr. Bongino is not.
30:24What was the reason for naming Mr. Bongino to this
30:28position?
30:29And was Mr. Patel not correct in making that
30:33assurance to those senators?
30:35Ms. McEnany I'm not sure if anybody in this room has
30:37listened to Mr. Bongino when he talks about the
30:40past corruption at the FBI, when he talks about his
30:43experience serving for the United States Secret
30:46Service.
30:47This is a man who loves his country and who has
30:50honorably served our country in ways that many
30:52people have not.
30:54He understands the depth of the corruption at these
30:56institutions, which the American people reelected
30:59President Trump to shake up.
31:00And I think it's quite despicable to see many
31:03networks in this room who have had chyrons on their
31:06television screens labeling Mr. Bongino as a
31:09far-right podcaster.
31:11He is not.
31:12He is a former law enforcement agent.
31:16He is a former Secret Service agent who put his
31:18life on the line to protect this country.
31:20And that is why the President of the United
31:22States has entrusted him for this important role.
31:25He's also an outsider to this Washington swamp.
31:28And we often see that when outsiders are appointed to
31:31such coveted positions, a lot of people in this city
31:33get very, very nervous.
31:34And they should be, because Dan Bongino and
31:37Kash Patel and Attorney General Bondi are focused
31:39on rooting out the corruption at these
31:41agencies and ending the weaponization of
31:43government once and for all.
31:45I'd like to end with something.
31:47As you all know —
31:48The Press You should thank James, as you were just
31:48about to do.
31:49Ms. McEnany You know what, James, I'm feeling
31:51generous.
31:51Go ahead.
31:52The Press I will take it.
31:55Thank you, Caroline.
31:56Ms. McEnany Sure.
31:56The Press I wanted to ask about —
31:57Ms. McEnany Don't make me regret this.
31:58The Press I wanted to ask about the Macron visit
32:02and the Russia-Ukraine talks in general.
32:04It's pretty clear to my eye that President Macron was
32:08performing a kind of delicate dance, lavishing
32:10praise on the President while seeking, in his own
32:12remarks, to try to bind President Trump to
32:15positions and even specific language that the
32:17President has not committed to heretofore.
32:20One of the most bracing comments from President
32:22Macron was when he said that the deal that
32:26President Trump is negotiating with the
32:27Russians must not be, quote, a surrender for
32:30Ukraine.
32:32All of the public points that we have heard from
32:35President Trump, from Secretary Hexeth, and
32:37from other administration officials talking about
32:39these negotiations have averred to, quite openly,
32:42to concessions from the Ukrainians that will have
32:44to be made — the minerals deal, the abandonment of
32:47their NATO ambitions, and other elements.
32:50So far, we have not heard any administration
32:52officials suggest a single concession that the
32:54Russians should be prepared to make.
32:56And so I wonder if you could assure us, at a
32:58minimum, that this negotiation process will
33:01not be as one-sided as the Europeans seem to think
33:04it is, that, in fact, President Putin will also
33:07be made to engage in some concessions to reach
33:10this deal.
33:10Ms. McEnany Well, I think the President knows how
33:12to make a deal better than anyone who has ever
33:14assumed the office of the American presidency.
33:17And in order to make a deal, you have to bring
33:20both sides to the table.
33:21And typically, when you make a good deal, both
33:23sides leave that table a little bit unhappy.
33:26I'm not going to outline the concessions that the
33:28President and his team are engaged in discussing.
33:31These are obviously ongoing negotiations, and
33:34it would be unwise of me to impede them from this
33:36podium.
33:37But the President has made significant
33:39improvements in ending this conflict.
33:42He is committed to seeing an end to the war.
33:44He wants to see the bloodshed and the killing
33:46stopped.
33:47He wants to stop seeing young men being killed
33:50and slaughtered.
33:51This has been going on for far too long.
33:53The President inherited this mess because of the
33:56incompetence of the previous administration,
33:57and he's committed to fixing it.
33:59And he's made, you know, some of those concessions
34:01clear, but I'm not going to get ahead of him on
34:03additional ones.
34:04But he is wholeheartedly committed to striking a
34:07peace deal in Russia and Ukraine, also in the
34:09Middle East.
34:10Thank you very much, guys.
34:11Good to see you.
34:11We'll see you later.