CNN political commentator Scott Jennings It was shredded Legacy media has gone mad over the Trump administration's decision to shake up the presspool.
Critics of President Donald Trump accused him of acting like a dictator by restricting event access to corporate outlets in exchange for providing more access to new media channels, including Blaze Media.
“Trump is much more transparent than the recent administration.”
On Tuesday's episode of “CNN Newsnight,” Jennings set a straightforward record for Trump administration's transparency compared to former President Joe Biden.
Xochitl Hinojosa, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee, accused Trump of revoking “individual reporters” and media-wide access to the White House.
“When Trump doesn't like questions, he doesn't like the New York Times stories, he doesn't like what someone says about him, he can ban those individuals,” Hisawa said. “That's what a dictator does.”
“It's scary,” she added. “He's trying to filter news to Americans.”
Host Abby Phillip responded by reading an X-post from Peter Baker, Chief White House correspondent for the New York Times.
“As I was a correspondent in Moscow in the early days of Putin's reign, this reminds me that the Kremlin took over its own press pool and made it accessible only to compliant journalists,” Baker wrote.
“OK, can you deal with this dictatorial business?” Jennings jumped into the conversation.
Jennings presented the statistics of Chris Chiliza, a political commentator who previously worked for CNN.
“Our old friend, Chris Chiliza, who calculated that the president had 1,009 questions in the first month of the Trump administration,” he continued. “There is almost no dictatorial behavior.”
“The same Joe Biden stats: 141,” Jennings pointed out. “And it reminds me of the Biden administration revoking the hard passes of 442 journalists in 2023. And at the time, the White House Correspondents Association cited a “uncommitted stance.” So, if you're worried about transparency, Trump is far more transparent than his recent administration. ”
In May 2023, Biden cancelled the press passes of hundreds of journalists. Upon his appointment, the Trump administration restored the media qualifications of those reporters.
Report from New York Post During the first 31 days of his first term, President Barack Obama said he had 161 questions.
Furthermore, the outlet noted that under the Trump administration, reporters often ask four or five questions at each event.
Something else?
Fox News Digital On Wednesday, Jennings reported that he was being encouraged to run for the Senate in 2026 to replace Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell (R).
Jennings did not respond to requests for comment from the news outlet.
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