Scott Jennings, a CNN conservative pundit and reported contender for Trump White House press secretary in the wake of Karoline Leavitt’s departure, made his first appearance on the network since President Donald Trump ignited an all-out firestorm after announcing a ban on MS NOW, POLITICO, and CNN, where Jennings himself works, calling them all “fake news” and suggesting that more media outlets would be on the chopping block soon.
In his Truth Social post announcing his assault on the First Amendment, the president wrote, “Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America,” before promising, “Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”
Trump’s announcement came on Friday, and by Monday, the three affected news organizations filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration, while the rest of America’s televised news networks joined in boycotting coverage of the president in solidarity with CNN, POLITICO, and MS NOW. Multiple legal analysts have already warned that if Trump does not rescind the media ban soon, he will almost assuredly lose in court.
Given that Scott Jennings is simultaneously hoping for a gig inside his beloved Donald Trump’s White House and works at one of the networks that was caught up in the president’s ban, the right-wing talking head found himself between a bit of a rock and a hard place, and his cognitive dissonance on the matter was on full display last night, as his CNN colleague Sara Sidner put him directly in the hot seat over the matter.
While guest-hosting CNN NewsNight, Sidner flat-out asked Jennings if he supports the president’s highly controversial move.
“Scott, I don’t know if you know this, but your name is up for running for the next press secretary,” Sidner opened, before going straight for the throat. “So, do you support the president’s ban on the press?”
Jennings proceeded to talk himself into a series of circles:
JENNINGS: I think he’s unlikely to prevail in court, A. B, it seems to me the net result of this has been he has less reach. I mean, his message is not going to get out as much. If this is sort of becomes the way it is, he will be seen and heard by fewer people, which I think is actually a net negative since he’s his own best spokesperson and his own best press secretary. Number three, I actually think sparring with some of these folks in the Oval works to his advantage. And so if you take them out, you lose that a little bit. So, my view is this is unlikely to stick based on what I’ve – I’m not a lawyer either, but based on what I’ve heard, it’s unlikely to stick. And it may be a little self-defeating if you consider that you want the president to be heard and seen more, like I do. This seems to be working against that. So we’ll see what happens.
ROGIN: So, if you’re press secretary, you’re not gonna do that? Is that what you’re pledging here right now?
JENNINGS: I’m not – I’m not answering that.
ROGIN: You’re not gonna single out any–
JENNINGS: Can I add one more thing? Actually, I actually think there’s a difference between, truthfully, CNN and Politico, and MS NOW. You watch MS NOW for 10 minutes; it’s like total alternate reality. I actually think there’s a difference.
SIDNER: Well, some people might say that about Fox.
JENNINGS: Yeah, Obama. He said that about Fox.
SIDNER: Let me just ask you, though. Do you support the president’s ban on the press? Because, I mean, you work here at CNN. Do you think the journalists here are reporting fake news?
JENNINGS: Uh, I sometimes strongly disagree with the framing. But no, I think we need to cover the news here, and I think we still can cover the news. But I consider this to be a news outlet. I consider Politico to be a news outlet. MS is a different story, in my view.
Jennings appears eager to both have his cake and eat it too, as he attempts to ride the thin line between his existing job and the one he’s so desperate to land inside the Trump White House — and he’s not doing a very good job of it.
