It’s been a rough 110 days for White House press secretary Sean Spicer, as the news emerged that he hid behind bushes on Tuesday evening as the James Comey firing broke.
It appears that the voice of the White House to the US media was blindsided by Donald Trump’s termination of Comey’s tenure as the head of the FBI, learning about the highly controversial move after the fact.
Caught out and wanting to avoid the media, with whom he has been at loggerheads since his first press briefing on inauguration day, the Washington Post detailed the great lengths Spicer and his staff went to in order to avoid having to answer any questions.
Reading like a plot line from Veep, Spicer was originally preparing to announce the news in an emailed statement, but a technical issue prevented the message from being sent. Spicer then barked the news out to the journalist gathered around his West Wing office, immediately retreating back inside and locking the door behind him.
Some hours later, by which time the number of journalists waiting impatiently at his door had largely increased, Spicer was reportedly seen “suddenly speed-walking up the White House drive,” with Kellyanne Conway.
When the media caught wind that their prey was on the run, they immediately gave chase, catching up with the pair just after they had finished taking part in live TV interviews for various cable networks. Spicer, along with members of his staff, then literally hid behind a tall hedge while figuring out what to do.
Sean Spicer ... pic.twitter.com/frgDMsBsv1
— Steven R. Walker (@Steve_R_Walker) May 11, 2017
Several minutes later, according to Post, the press secretary emerged from the bushes and agreed to answer questions, provided the gathered reporters turned off their lights and cameras. For the following 10 minutes, Spicer stood in the dark, offering inconclusive answers relating to James Comey’s sacking.
But after the Post ran the story, widely shared across the United States and the world, Spicer contacted the newspaper and asked them to correct some of the facts as reported.
This story has been updated to more precisely describe Spicer's location near White House bushes on Tuesday night https://t.co/kRwAq4lLeo
— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) May 11, 2017
In an editor’s note confirming the change at the bottom of the piece, the Post corrected itself, saying: “This story has been updated to more precisely describe White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s location late Tuesday night in the minutes before he briefed reporters.
“Spicer huddled with his staff among bushes near television sets on the White House grounds, not ‘in the bushes,’ as the story originally stated.”
