White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Wednesday said that despite what President Trump says, he did not actually get a phone call from the leader of the Boy Scouts complimenting his controversial speech at the annual jamboree.

Trump's speech in late July to a national gathering of thousands of Boy Scouts in West Virginia was criticized by many for being overtly political at an event where prior presidents have focused on subjects like volunteering and giving back. In response to the blowback, the chief executive of Boy Scouts of America later apologized that "politics were inserted into the Scouting program."



But in an interview with the Wall Street Journal last week — the transcript of which was released by Politico on Tuesday — Trump said that he received a call from the head of the Boy Scouts, and was told his speech to the organization and thousands of scouts was the "greatest."

"And I got a call from the head of the Boy Scouts saying it was the greatest speech that was ever made to them, and they were very thankful," Trump was quoted as saying.



However, an official with the Boy Scouts of America told BuzzFeed News on Tuesday that they were unaware of any such phone call to the president.

