Karoline Leavitt’s White House press conference marks return to Trump-era media relations

The Trump White House’s 27-year-old press secretary staunchly defended an abrupt freeze on federal grants and proclaimed a new era of aggressive immigration enforcement on Tuesday, marking a confrontational return to Trump-era media relations in the administration’s first official briefing.

Karoline Leavitt, the youngest White House press secretary in history, insisted the controversial funding pause set to activate on Tuesday evening would not affect individual benefits like social security and Medicare, but would target what she called “illegal DEI programs” and the “green new scam” initiatives that she claimed waste taxpayer money.

“The American people gave President Trump an overwhelming mandate on November 5, and he’s trying to ensure that the tax money going out the door in this very bankrupt city actually aligns with the will and priorities of the American people,” Leavitt said.

The federal funding pause could affect trillions of dollars in grants and loans, having an impact on everything from school meals for low-income students to wildfire preparedness and programs for homeless veterans, according to internal documents. The office of management and budget has requested details from federal agencies about more than 2,600 programs that could be affected, including the WIC nutrition program for pregnant women and infants and Medicare enrollment assistance.

The press secretary claimed the administration had already blocked “$37m that was about to go out the door to the World Health Organization” and “$50m taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza”, calling such spending “preposterous”.

On immigration, Leavitt celebrated the arrest of more than 1,100 undocumented immigrants in recent operations, according to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. When pressed about reports that nearly half had no prior criminal record, she declared that entering the country illegally made them “by definition, a criminal”.

She also defended Trump’s executive order attempting to end birthright citizenship, despite legal challenges from 22 state attorneys general. “This administration believes that birthright citizenship is unconstitutional,” Leavitt said, vowing to take the fight to the supreme court.

Leavitt announced a new coverage protocol development, saying the White House would open the briefing room to “new media” voices, including social media influencers and independent journalists.

The nearly hour-long session focused on the administration’s swift policy shifts, and left a warning for reporters about their coverage.

“We know for a fact there have been lies that have been pushed by many legacy media outlets in this country about this president, about his family, and we will not accept that,” Leavitt said.