The Kayleigh McEnany Tweet That's Making People Cringe
White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany is seriously pressing peoples' buttons online. A former political commentator, McEnany was named Donald Trump's press secretary in April 2020, following in the footsteps of Stephanie Grisham, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Sean Spicer (remember him?), per The New York Times. The job of press secretary essentially entails taking flack from the press in the name of the president, so it's no wonder that in Trump's administration, there's been about as much turnover as Harry Potter's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. As the 45th president's term winds down and President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office in January 2021, McEnany is (surprise, surprise) causing a little last-minute uproar.
On Dec. 14, 2020, Biden was recognized by the Electoral College as the 46th president of the United States, per CBS News. "While we all wish that our fellow Americans in these positions will always show such courage and commitment to free and fair elections, I hope we never again see anyone subjected to the kind of threats and abuse we saw in this election," Biden said (via The Washington Post) in his pointed public address after getting the recognition, seemingly referring to Trump's efforts at overturning the election results.
Well, that didn't sit well with Kayleigh McEnany. Though Thanksgiving 2020 may be over, the "roast" has only just begun for this White House official after she posted the following cringe-inducing tweet. Scroll down to see what she wrote.
Kayleigh McEnany called Joe Biden's speech this buzzword
So, what is the tweet Kayleigh McEnany posted that's upsetting folks online? After Joe Biden's "fiery address," per AOL, Donald Trump's press secretary took to Twitter with some ... thoughts. "Joe Biden should not ever utter the words 'unprecedented assault on democracy,'" she wrote on Dec. 14, 2020, spacing out her message in Haiku-like stanzas. "THIS was an 'assault on democracy' ... THREE YEAR fake Russia investigation ... BASELESS impeachment ... RIGGING election with mass mail-in voting w/ no safeguards ... This is a DIVISIVE speech!"
"Divisive" (in all caps), eh? Clearly, Twitter users found McEnany's lash-out to be quite an accusation, given some of President Trump's finer moments (like his telling white supremacist groups to "stand back and stand by").
"Do you need cardboard boxes?," one user asked. "Crying to the bitter end," wrote another. "Get used to it, Kayleigh. Your abuse of our great country has gone on long enough. Say Goodbye," posted a third. "Kayleigh, the Office of Government Ethics has advised that you can file a termination financial disclosure report early if you update it on your last day to disclose any new interests," one Twitter user wrote in response. "You can also ask the ethics office about post-employment restrictions, now that you're leaving." Yet another user humorously responded with a movie trailer GIF that subbed in the words, "no one cares."
Yup, Twitter has spoken, and its message to Kayleigh McEnany is clear: It's (almost) over.
Kayleigh McEnany got roasted the next day on CNN
It really wasn't a great week for Kayleigh McEnany. The day after she issued her tweet, putting "DIVISIVE" in aggressive all-caps, McEnany got roasted on CNN. Anchor Don Lemon gave his real, uncensored opinion of the White House press secretary on Dec. 15, 2020, according to the Daily Beast. To make matters even more awkward, it's worth reminding readers that McEnany actually worked for the media company once upon a time, according to CNN.
Lemon said that there "is a carnival of lies that is the White House," where McEnany is acting like the election didn't even happen, per the Daily Beast, "like she's not about to be out of a job." CNN showed a clip of a White House briefing earlier on Dec. 15, 2020, where McEnany said, "The president is still involved in ongoing litigation related to the election" and suggested the press "refer to the campaign" for more information. Mmkay?
Lemon was clearly done with this kind of evasive talk out of the White House, especially after the Electoral College called the vote for President-elect Joe Biden. "Did you know she also worked for—", Lemon pointed at the CNN desk before cutting himself off and simply saying, "Girl, bye."
McEnany seems to be huddling around Donald Trump in a dwindling group of people still holding onto false election reports. In fact, a major Republican figure already congratulated Biden on his win.
Kayleigh McEnany then dodged a question about Mitch McConnell
Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell broke away from Donald Trump and congratulated President-elect Joe Biden on Dec. 15, 2020, according to The New York Times, and that's not all he did. McConnell privately spoke with other Republicans to accept the results of the Electoral College and resist joining any "doomed last-ditch effort to reverse the outcome in Congress."
Considering that the "most powerful Republican in Congress," according to the Times, acknowledged the election win for Biden, it makes sense that reporters asked Kayleigh McEnany about McConnell's public declaration in a press briefing at the White House on Dec. 15, 2020. A reporter asked McEnany (via The Guardian), "What was [Trump's] reaction to Leader McConnell today congratulating Joe Biden and calling him the 'president-elect?'"
"I haven't gotten the president's reaction to that yet," McEnany said. "But the president again is pursuing ongoing litigation." If we had to guess, CNN's Don Lemon would probably respond to that McEnany statement with yet another "Girl, bye."