Jen Psaki wishes Kayleigh McEnany well as she joins Fox News, says she's happy to face her predecessor on-air
Former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany is returning to Fox News to become the latest alumni of the previous Donald Trump administration to join the network. On Tuesday, March 2, Fox News host Harris Faulkner announced McEnany’s joining while having her as a guest. The 32-year-old, who served as the press secretary between April 2020 and January 2021, will be an on-air contributor. McEnany’s successor and current White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has wished her well in her new role and said she would be happy to be on the network with the former.
McEnany called Fox her home earlier in his career. She once worked as a production assistant assigned to ‘Huckabee’, a now-defunct Fox News program which was hosted by former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who is also the father of another press secretary of the Trump era -- Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Sanders became a Fox News contributor in 2019 after her stint with the White House but has now left it as she is running for the post of the Arkansas governor.
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'We disagree on political issues but talked about families'
“I’ve done Fox News Sunday twice now I’m happy to go on a range of shows,” Psaki, who worked as a political contributor on CNN between 2017 and 2020, said at a press briefing on Tuesday. She said McEnany and she had spoken a few times in green rooms at CNN while waiting to go on air. That was the time when McEnany was also a CNN contributor and was yet to become a close ally to Trump. “Like many Americans, we disagree on political issues but we talked about our families, our spouses, sports.. all sorts of things in the green room. And I certainly wish her the best in her future endeavors,” Psaki said.
McEnany, who was the fourth press secretary under Trump, has been critical of President Joe Biden on her personal Twitter account while Psaki’s task is mainly centered around defending the action of the Biden administration.
Questions arose over McEnany's future employment
McEnany joined Fox News after an original job offer from the network was put on hold in the wake of the January 6 riots at the Capitol. Questions were raised over her future employment following her disclosure report which was obtained by watchdog group CREW which showed she had an offer from Fox two months ago. McEnany signed the disclosure report on January 12, saying she had an ‘employment agreement with Fox News, starting work in January’. She signed the report before exiting the White House on January 19, on the eve of Biden’s inauguration.
However, a Fox spokesperson said in January that “Kayleigh McEnany is not currently an employee or contributor at FOX News”. The network had talks with McEnany but they were put on hold. “Initial conversations were had post-election and we paused on them. We do not discuss the details behind contracts with any personnel, but we are open to hiring her in the future given we do not condone cancel culture,” a source familiar with the matter was quoted as saying.
The Washington Post reported that after the presidential election, McEnany made 20 appearances on Fox. She joined the Republican National Committee after her stint with CNN and then joined Trump’s re-election campaign. She later joined the White House following a staff shake-up initiated by former chief of staff Mark Meadows.
Before McEnany, Larry Kudlow, a former top economic adviser to Trump, joined Fox. In January, the network announced that Kudlow would host a weekday show on Fox Business Network. Kudlow was roped in in the wake of the January 6 insurrection.