Ex-Trump official says POTUS' White House press ban shows he’s ‘melting down’
WASHINGTON, DC: Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham has spoken out against her former boss after President Donald Trump banned CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House.
Speaking to CNN’s Brianna Keilar on Friday, September 18, Grisham said the move did not surprise her and claimed Trump had wanted to push the entire White House press corps off the grounds during his first term.
Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham tells CNN’s Brianna Keilar she’s "not surprised" by Trump’s media ban. pic.twitter.com/EzdAKdAe02
— CNN (@CNN) September 19, 2026
Stephanie Grisham says Trump tasked her with 'getting press corps off White House grounds'
Grisham said Trump had previously “tasked” her with “getting the press corps off the White House grounds” during his first term.
“He had me looking at places that they could go that were off the White House grounds because he wanted everybody kicked out, not just the few that you guys are dealing with right now. I'm sure it'll get bigger,” she told Keilar.
According to Grisham, she would “push it off and stall him” when Trump made the request. She said she expected him to return to the issue if he came back into power.
“That’s something that I knew was going to happen,” the 50-year-old said, pointing to what she described as the Republican leader's approach during his current administration.
She added that Trump “clearly feels very, very empowered right now” and said the latest media ban therefore “didn’t surprise me at all.”
Trump bans CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House
Trump announced the media ban on Truth Social on Friday, accusing CNN, MS NOW and Politico of being “FAKE NEWS!”
“They purposely write negative news. And they do that because they want to try and diminish the Republicans and a Republican administration,” Trump later said at a press conference.
Grisham said she had hoped someone inside the White House would tell Trump not to move forward with the ban.
“But it seems like he has really surrounded himself with sycophants and doesn't have the guardrails that we kind of had in Trump 1.0,” she shared.
The former White House press secretary also argued that the administration was focusing on issues that, in her view, were not what people were most concerned about.
Stephanie Grisham says Trump is ‘melting down’
Grisham said people were dealing with economic problems and suggested the media restrictions were not what mattered most to them.
“People don't care that the White House isn't, or that the press can't be on the White House grounds, because they're suffering, and he's not doing anything, but these silly projects and these silly little vanity, you know, issues that he's doing,” she said.
Grisham then delivered her strongest assessment of Trump’s current approach.
“And so once again, it's just not good. It doesn't look good. He's so out of touch, and he's melting down,” she said.
