Signs Trump's New Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Is A Kayleigh McEnany Wannabe
Donald Trump's current press secretary, Karoline Leavitt may be trying to fill Kayleigh McEnany's shoes. If you recall, McEnany served as Trump's press secretary during the final stretch of his one-term presidency. She started the job in April 2020 and held her position until Trump tossed the presidential reins to Biden in January 2021. During her time with controversial administration, McEnany was on the frontlines in defense of her boss. She often went beyond the call of duty to smooth out Trump's blemishes within the media. Infamously, McEnany downplayed Trump's racial slur against Asian people during the COVID-19 pandemic, per CNN.
McEnany and Trump have fallen out, partially because of his former employee's incorrect account of his popularity in the polls, per his May 2023 Truth Social post. Trump has since appointed Leavitt, who worked under McEnany as her assistant press secretary, into the position that once afforded McEnany a pretty sweet salary. On the surface, the women bear plenty of physical similarities, including their bleach blonde hair, often curled away from their faces, and colorful, business casual wardrobes. However, it seems that Leavitt has totally stolen McEnany's ferocious approach to defending the former POTUS, despite the backlash that often ensues in the aftermath. Although she hasn't been in the position for very long, Leavitt has definitely taken the baton when it comes to insulating the former president.
Karoline Leavitt is Joe Biden's biggest critic
Like Kayleigh McEnany did and will probably continue to do forever, Karoline Leavitt has been highly critical of Joe Biden's ability to lead the country. During an appearance on "Fox Across America," Leavitt bashed Biden while waxing poetic about Donald Trump's positive attributes. In Leavitt's eyes, Trump has tackled the complex issue of immigration and helped the economy flourish, but Biden hasn't measured up as president. "And what they see is Joe Biden constantly tripping up stairs, slurring over his words," said Leavitt (via Fox News Radio). Leavitt also accused Biden of alternating between screaming and whispering during speeches. "It's embarrassing for our country."
Leavitt also bashed Biden's campaign during Trump's hush-money trial. On May 28, 2024, Leavitt stood outside the courtroom and complained about the Biden's campaign's supposed ploy to siphon publicity from Trump's trial. "What you just heard from is a desperate and failing and pathetic campaign, who knows that they are losing," said Leavitt during a press conference (via Forbes Breaking News). "Joe Biden's sending his campaign outside of this courthouse, it is a full blown concession that this trial is a witch hunt that comes from the top, comes from Joe Biden." She also claimed that both conservative and legal scholars believed that Trump hadn't committed any crime.
Karoline Leavitt criticized the judge from Trump's criminal trial
Karoline Leavitt also took some frustration out on the judge presiding over Donald Trump's criminal trial. While speaking on Fox News in early May, Leavitt claimed that the judge wielded unfair bias towards him. "When you're in the courtroom, you can really see the disdain that this highly partisan and political judge has for President Trump," said Leavitt, who also claimed that the judge didn't have patience for the politician. "It's shocking to watch in person," she added. Later, Leavitt lambasted the judge for handing down a gag order for Trump and his campaign staff during the criminal trial. "The president can't defend himself and our campaign can't defend him against these salacious and wrongful attacks either."
Of course, this isn't the first time that Leavitt channeled her inner Kayleigh McEnany to sway the public's opinion on Trump. On June 24, she got into a heated exchange while discussing the upcoming presidential debate on CNN. "That's why President Trump is knowingly going into a hostile environment on this very network, on CNN, with debate moderators who have made their opinions about him very well known over the past eight years," she said (via Fox News). Leavitt's accusations of bias didn't exactly garner her the outcome she probably wanted. After host Kasie Hunt corrected Leavitt's assumption that the moderators would treat Trump unfairly, she pushed Leavitt off the air altogether.
Karoline Leavitt attacked 'The View' panelists
Although "The View" has always been comprised of a group of panelists with starkly different political views, Donald Trump has never been the most popular topic among the diverse set of hosts. Of course, this means that Kayleigh McEnany has criticized their viewpoints on at least one occasion. In July 2023, McEnany denounced the hosts while discussing the possibility of Senator Joe Manchin's running as a third party candidate in the 2024 presidential election. "Sorry, Joe, but many of Biden's allies on the left, and in the liberal media, aren't going to let that happen," she said on "Outnumbered." "The ladies on 'The View,' for example, they freaked out on this."
True to form, Karoline Leavitt also followed her former boss' lead and joined in on bashing the hosts of the "The View." Except Trump's latest press secretary went way further with her criticism as she attacked the co-hosts' personal characters in addition to their political beliefs. "The liberal and deranged women on [The View] should immediately seek help, because President Trump will be re-elected back to the White House very soon," Leavitt posted to her Instagram in May 2024. The caption accompanied a clip of Leavitt on Fox News complaining about "The View" hosts making light of Trump possibly serving time in prison in the event he was convicted in his criminal trial. She further insulted the co-hosts and claimed they weren't aligned with voters' wants.
Karoline Leavitt and Kayleigh McEnany have both criticized Karine Jean-Pierre
Karoline Leavitt also seems to share Kayleigh McEnany's disdain for President Joe Biden's press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre. For example, in June 2024, McEnany hit back at Jean-Pierre after she claimed that videos of Biden struggling to concentrate were weren't authentic, and instead, the result of "cheap fakes," a term coined by The Washington Post to describe the clips made by Biden's political adversaries. McEnany attempted to turn the tables by accusing Biden social media team of using deceptively edited videos during an episode of "Outnumbered" (via The Hill). "So, Karine Jean-Pierre. You want to talk about bad faith? Look in the mirror, go march down to Delaware. Talk to your campaign. You're the one doing cheap fakes."
One month earlier, Leavitt took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to bash Biden's tax plan and his press secretary. In the re-tweeted clip, Jean-Pierre addressed a question about Biden's decision to allow a Trump-era tax cut expire, which the reporter claimed would raise taxes for the American people. "So, look, as you said, the president is going to ... let the Trump tax cut expire, and he was very clear. But he is not going to raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000 a year," said Jean-Pierre. Leavitt, however, took this as an opportunity to voice her thoughts about the economy under the current president. "Bidenflation is already A TAX on every single American. But that's not enough..." wrote Leavitt on X.
Karoline Leavitt and Kayleigh McEnany rock similar aesthetics
Although her personal style may come second to her complete and utter devotion to Donald Trump, Karoline Leavitt definitely seems to be taking style tips from Kayleigh McEnany as well. Over the years, McEnany has sported bleach blonde hair, cropped up to or just slightly below her shoulders. As shown in this Instagram post, she usually keeps her hair styled simple in wand curls, often parted off to the side. However, the star of her look is usually her brightly colored wardrobe, which spans the entirety of the color spectrum.
Leavitt, too, embraces a similar look. Although she often wears her blond tresses straight, she's also been known to whip out the curling iron before appearing on television or at professional gatherings. Like McEnany, she also has an appreciation for bright, colorful clothing, which Leavitt often boasts about her on her social media. For example, in August 2023, Leavitt posted a video to Instagram showing off her all-demin number as she attended a performance by country star Morgan Wallen in Fenway park.