Reporters are appalled that President-elect Donald Trump isn’t treating them like royalty. Or even the garbage he often depicted them as on the campaign trail.
He insulted them relentlessly. But there’s no doubt Trump wanted them there.
In a statement issued Wednesday morning, White House Correspondents’ Association President Jeff Mason, who covers the White House for Reuters, issued a statement admonishing Trump for bypassing reporters representing the White House transition pool when he dined out with family at 21 Tuesday night.
“On Tuesday President-elect Trump went out for dinner in New York without a pool of journalists in his motorcade and after reporters were advised that he was in for the night. One week after the election, it is unacceptable for the next president of the United States to travel without a regular pool to record his movements and inform the public about his whereabouts. The White House Correspondents’ Association is pleased to hear reassurances by the Trump transition team that it will respect long-held traditions of press access at the White House and support a pool structure. But the time to act on that promise is now. Pool reporters are in place in New York to cover the president-elect as he assembles his new administration. It is critical that they be allowed to do their jobs.”