Key moments from Spicer's return to the White House briefing room The White House press secretary goes on the attack against 'fake news' and insists Trump is 'very pleased' with his staff.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer returned to the briefing room Tuesday, taking questions on-camera for the first time since May 15.

The embattled spokesman and de facto interim communications director, who had a two-week reprieve from the spotlight while President Donald Trump traveled abroad, addressed the press with the prospect of a larger personnel shakeup and a growing number of questions about the Trump-Russia probes that have engulfed the administration.


Here are the highlights from Spicer’s briefing:

Spicer said Trump is “rightly concerned” with fake news. The president tweeted Tuesday morning that Russian officials are laughing at the U.S. and “how a lame excuse for why the Dems lost the election has taken over the Fake News.” Spicer said Trump, like him and “so many others,” is frustrated when he sees “stories come out that are patently false, to see narratives that are wrong, to see ‘fake news.’ When you see stories get perpetrated that are absolutely false, that are not based in fact, that is troubling, and he’s rightly concerned,” Spicer continued.

CNN’s Jim Acosta pressed Spicer to provide an example of so-called “fake news,” so Spicer pointed to a BBC reporter’s tweet of a video that went viral Friday. The 20-second clip appears to show the president ignoring Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni while other G-7 leaders listen to a translation, but others pointed out Trump had an earpiece in his right ear that wasn’t visible in the frame. Spicer singled out New York Times reporter Peter Baker for apparently shaking his head at the choice of the tweet as an example of fake news, and he dismissed Acosta’s assertion that reporters make mistakes. “That’s just fake,” Spicer said of the tweet.

Spicer refuses to confirm or deny reports that Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner tried to establish a backchannel with the Russians during the transition. “I think that assumes a lot,” Spicer told a reporter, pointing to a statement from Kushner’s lawyer regarding Kushner’s willingness to share information with Congress. “Your question presupposes facts that have not been confirmed.”

Trump is “very pleased” with his staff, Spicer said, hours after news surfaced that Trump had accepted communications director Mike Dubke’s resignation on May 18. “I think the president is very pleased with his team, and he has a robust agenda, as I’ve just outlined, that he looks forward working with Congress to get done to achieve results for the American people,” Spicer said.

Breaking News Alerts Get breaking news when it happens — in your inbox. Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Trump’s relationship with German Chancellor Angela Merkel is “fairly unbelievable,” Spicer said, insisting Trump has much respect for the German leader. Trump tweeted Tuesday morning that Germany has a massive trade deficit and doesn’t pay enough for NATO and its defense, but Spicer maintained the two leaders “get along very well. He has a lot of respect for her. They continue to grow the bond that they had during their talks in the G-7, and he views not just Germany but the rest of Europe as an important American ally.”

Trump is “frustrated” by the pace of legislation, Spicer said, explaining why the president tweeted support for scrapping the Senate’s 60-vote threshold in order to enact his legislative agenda. The Trump spokesman conceded that Senate rules are up to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell but suggested Trump is irked by Democratic obstruction and the slow movement of legislation. “I think he wants to see action done,” Spicer said. “That’s what the president wants.”

Trump is interviewing FBI director candidates John Pistole and Chris Wray, Spicer said. “When the president feels as though he’s met with the right candidate, he’ll let us know,” he added. “But he’ll meet with candidates today and continue to do so until he finds the right leader.”

“Honestly, I haven’t asked him,” Spicer said when asked if the president believes human activity is contributing to the warming of the climate. Trump tweeted last week that he will announce this week whether the U.S. will pull out of the Paris climate accord. “What he ultimately decides,” Spicer said later, “is up to him.”

