White House Shakeup Underway as Stephanie Grisham Abruptly Out as Press Secretary
White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham is stepping down from her position and rejoining the first lady’s office as chief of staff and spokeswoman for Melania Trump.
Grisham will be taking over for Lindsay Reynolds who served as the first lady’s chief of staff until she resigned earlier this week to “spend time with her family,” according to Melania Trump’s statement.
“I am excited to welcome Stephanie back to the team in this new role,” Trump said.
“She has been a mainstay and true leader in the Administration from even before day one, and I know she will excel as Chief of Staff.”
She added, “I appreciate all that Lindsay Reynolds did over the past three years, and wish her well in her future endeavors.”
Prior to becoming the press secretary, Grisham worked as the communications director for Melania Trump.
“I continue to be honored to serve both the President and the First Lady in the Administration,” Grisham said in the statement.
“My replacements will be announced in the coming days and I will stay in the West Wing to help with a smooth transition for as long as needed.”
Grisham only served as press secretary for nine months, taking over for Sarah Sanders when she resigned last year.
Her departure leaves an opening for Trump’s fourth press secretary of his first term.
Unlike Sanders and her predecessor Sean Spicer, Grisham did not hold any traditional media briefings and instead communicated through interviews, statements and tweets, Fox News reported.
Daily briefings have only recently returned in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
This latest White House shakeup comes as Mark Meadows takes over as chief of staff.
Axios reported last week that Grisham may be on the outs because Meadows was already meeting with potential new White House press secretaries, but when asked, Grisham seemed unaware of the change.
“Sounds like more palace intrigue to me, but I’ve also been in quarantine,” she told the publication.
“If true, how ironic that the press secretary would hear about being replaced in the press.”
Grisham had been in self-quarantine after a potential exposure to the novel coronavirus at Mar-a-Lago, NPR reported.
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