{"id":229,"date":"2025-06-13T09:34:03","date_gmt":"2025-06-13T09:34:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=229"},"modified":"2025-06-13T09:34:03","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T09:34:03","slug":"leavitt-storms-out-of-press-briefing-over-free-speech-grilling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/?p=229","title":{"rendered":"Leavitt Storms Out of Press Briefing Over Free Speech Grilling"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>White House Press Secretary\u00a0<a class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/keyword\/karoline-leavitt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-ylk=\"slk:Karoline Leavitt;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-rapid_p=\"10\" data-v9y=\"1\">Karoline Leavitt<\/a>\u00a0abruptly ended a news conference after facing tough questions over free speech.<\/p>\n<p>Amid ongoing tensions over\u00a0<a class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/keyword\/donald-j-trump\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-ylk=\"slk:Donald Trump\u2019;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-rapid_p=\"11\" data-v9y=\"1\">Donald Trump\u2019<\/a>s immigration crackdown in Los Angeles, Leavitt held a briefing in which she accused Democrats of being responsible for \u201cleft wing riots\u201d and doubled down on the president\u2019s suggestion that many of the protesters involved were \u201cpaid insurrectionists.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"caas-figure\">\n<div class=\"caas-figure-with-pb\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"caas-img-container caas-img-lightbox\" data-lightbox-src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/A1bfk74H7nPMTyBpM_GW2Q--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNjAwO2NmPXdlYnA-\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/9b1f54d6382da31f440c2875a191f756\"><span class=\"caas-img-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"caas-img caas-lazy has-preview caas-loaded\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/SROnxpzQ2i21npma54yTDA--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/9b1f54d6382da31f440c2875a191f756\" alt=\" Protesters confront California National Guard soldiers and police outside of a federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles following days of clashes with police. \/ David McNew \/ Getty Images\" data-caas-lazy-loading-init=\"1\" \/><button class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp caas-lightbox\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;elm:expand;itc:1\" data-rapid_p=\"12\" data-v9y=\"1\"><\/button><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\">\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"caption-collapse\" data-id=\"m-1\">Protesters confront California National Guard soldiers and police outside of a federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles following days of clashes with police. \/ David McNew \/ Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>But things got testy when NOTUS reporter Jasmine Wright asked the press secretary about Saturday\u2019s military parade in Washington, which will coincide with Trump\u2019s 79th birthday.<\/p>\n<p>With hundreds of counter rallies expected across the country, Trump had earlier warned that protesters would be met with \u201cheavy force\u201d if they rained on his parade.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf there were peaceful protests on Saturday for the military parade, President Trump would allow that?\u201d Wright asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course the president supports peaceful protests,\u201d Leavitt clapped back. \u201cWhat a stupid question.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"caas-figure\">\n<div class=\"caas-figure-with-pb\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"caas-img-container caas-img-lightbox\" data-lightbox-src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/t4191ZQBh7suWYYJHeWiGQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNjAwO2NmPXdlYnA-\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/681a7cc018dd0a8617bb471727349ebf\"><span class=\"caas-img-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"caas-img caas-lazy has-preview caas-loaded\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/s7yoCsmASgizLb3e.erR3A--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/681a7cc018dd0a8617bb471727349ebf\" alt=\"White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt calls on reporters during a daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room. \/ Win McNamee \/ Getty Images\" data-caas-lazy-loading-init=\"1\" \/><button class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp caas-lightbox\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;elm:expand;itc:1\" data-rapid_p=\"13\" data-v9y=\"1\"><\/button><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\">\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"caption-collapse\" data-id=\"m-2\">White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt calls on reporters during a daily press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room. \/ Win McNamee \/ Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>A few minutes later, the New York Times\u2019 David Sanger returned to the issue of free speech, asking what type of protest Trump would support.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs the First Amendment the most important? Is stopping violence the most important? Why is he not out saying all peaceful protesters will be protected?\u201d Sanger asked.<\/p>\n<p>Leavitt answered that while the president supports free speech and the right to protest, \u201cthat is not the majority of the behavior that we have seen taking place in Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo are you saying the majority of these protests have not been peaceful?\u201d Sanger continued.<\/p>\n<p>A combatative Leavitt then pointed out that almost 400 illegal immigrants had been arrested, to which Sanger noted there had been thousands of people on the streets.<\/p>\n<p>After a few more seconds of sparring, Leavitt concluded by saying the president would not stray from his mission to deport illegal immigrants from the country &#8211; and abruptly walked out without taking further questions.<\/p>\n<div class=\"caas-iframe-wrapper\" data-embed-anchor=\"c13a48a9-e282-540d-90d9-739a35a3b844\">\n<div class=\"caas-iframe youtube caas-loaded\" data-type=\"youtube\" data-caas-lazy-loading-init=\"1\"><iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XdUuXPRcC7E\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The 26 minute briefing comes amid accusations of overreach by the Trump administration, which has so far sent almost 5000 troops,\u00a0<a class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/keyword\/national-guard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-ylk=\"slk:National Guard;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-rapid_p=\"14\" data-v9y=\"1\">National Guard<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/keyword\/marines\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" data-ylk=\"slk:Marines;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" data-rapid_p=\"15\" data-v9y=\"1\">Marines<\/a>, to Los Angeles.<\/p>\n<p>But the issue of the First Amendment is sensitive for the White House, given that Trump has long claimed to be a defender of free speech.<\/p>\n<p>The First Amendment is meant to protect five fundamental freedoms: religion, speech, press, assembly, and the right to petition the government.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"caas-figure\">\n<div class=\"caas-figure-with-pb\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"caas-img-container caas-img-lightbox\" data-lightbox-src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/Wh29TFhgS6ZnHZ5IfYiWZg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNTQ2O2NmPXdlYnA-\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/9ca675399e7f6e28d06763c1537b4342\"><span class=\"caas-img-wrapper\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"caas-img caas-lazy has-preview caas-loaded\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/owlmJBPOckp7eXEVubjovA--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYxOTtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/thedailybeast.com\/9ca675399e7f6e28d06763c1537b4342\" alt=\"Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that anyone protesting against his military parade this week would be met with \" data-caas-lazy-loading-init=\"1\" \/><button class=\"link rapid-noclick-resp caas-lightbox\" aria-label=\"View larger image\" data-ylk=\"sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;elm:expand;itc:1\" data-rapid_p=\"16\" data-v9y=\"1\"><\/button><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\">\n<div class=\"caption-wrapper caption-aligned-with-image\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"caption-collapse\" data-id=\"m-3\">Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that anyone protesting against his military parade this week would be met with<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Hours after he took his second-term oath of office, Trump signed an executive order describing his commitment to the First Amendment and the right to \u201cspeak freely in the public square without government interference.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGovernment censorship of speech is intolerable in a free society,\u201d his order said.<\/p>\n<p>But this week, he has repeatedly warned that he would crush dissidents who stood in the way of his immigration agenda or his extravagant military parade.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf there\u2019s any protester that wants to come out, they will be met with very big force,\u201d Trump said on Tuesday. \u201cI haven\u2019t even heard about a protest, but you know, this is people that hate our country, but they will be met with very heavy forc<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>White House Press Secretary\u00a0Karoline Leavitt\u00a0abruptly ended a news conference after facing tough questions over free speech. Amid ongoing<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":230,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=229"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":231,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/229\/revisions\/231"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.cedritech.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}