A profound change is taking to the White House briefing room. A new generation of hard-right influencers is taking the stage. As many of you noticed, Dom Lucre aka McGee was on everyone’s radar recently. Like his suspension on X, formerly Twitter, earlier this year for sharing a video showing child sexual abuse. Lucre’s reinstatement came at the insistence of the platform’s owner, Elon Musk. His most recent presence to the briefing room exemplified the transition, showing up in a black woolly hat and hoodie. There, he went after what he referred to as “lamestream media” for propagating anti-Trump stories.
During the briefing, Lucre brought attention to the case of Kilmar Ábrego García, a US citizen wrongly deported to El Salvador. He is deeply convinced that it was in those first 99 days of Trump’s presidency that the radical judges started their coordinated assault on the rule of law. He fought passionately to make this point. His remarks are a reflection of a much larger trend. Right-wing media figures have increasingly stepped into broader anti-government sentiment to push back on unfavorable government narratives and damning media narratives.
Kara Leavitt, who was present during Lucre’s questioning, responded to his remarks without offering specific advice but reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to welcoming diverse viewpoints into the dialogue. She stated, “We want to welcome all viewpoints into this room,” underscoring the current administration’s approach to media engagement.
Tim Pool, another right-wing commentator in attendance, pressed Leavitt on the behavior of certain media outlets, questioning if there were plans to expand access to new companies. His question points to a larger, continuing struggle between mainstream journalism and new right-wing provocateurs.
Pool followed with a racist remark about how wonderful the Trump administration’s immigrant deportation policy was. As Leavitt would later describe it, the exercise was “refreshing.” This is a perfect example of the zero-sum game rhetoric that permeates even academic debates on immigration policy.
Influencers like Benny Johnson and Rogan O’Handley are carving out their niches in this changing media ecosystem. Johnson is just one of 15 right-wing influencers who got early access to key evidence in the Jeffrey Epstein case. The White House initially described this evidence as groundbreaking. So far, O’Handley has made a name for himself with over-the-top assertions. He claims that the Biden administration has caused an increase in suicide rates, and he claims that judges are giving more due process to violent illegal immigrants than to American citizens who demonstrated on Jan. 6.
“In Trump’s first 99 days, we’ve seen a coordinated assault on the rule of law by radical judges,” – Rogan O’Handley
Whatever success these practitioners have found has not been without its controversies. Beyond O’Handley’s comments in particular, ATC members are committed to discussing how such rhetoric is anti-democratic and poisons the well of public understanding and advocacy.
Winston Marshall, the British national and son of GB News co-owner Sir Paul Marshall. He’s working hard to change the story being told in the briefing room. His participation brings a global perspective to the conversation about the future of U.S. politics.
Amidst these discussions, Arynne Wexler made headlines with her anecdotal support for the administration’s immigration policies, stating, “I can attest to the deportations in Florida. My Uber drivers finally speak English again.” These personal testimonies only repeat and reinforce the political messaging coming from right-wing commentators on the need and justification for mass immigration enforcement.
As this new wave of right-wing influencers takes center stage in the White House briefing room, their presence signals a shift in how political narratives are shaped and communicated. The explosion of social media has completely changed the game for the daily press briefing. Today, all viewpoints are welcome to the party, encouraging a rich and complex tapestry of debate and discussion.
“Is there any possibility for names such as Barack Hussein Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton, to ever possibly get investigated for … any of the wrongdoings they might have done?” – Dominick McGee
Lucre and his contemporaries are still pushing against these narratives and asking tough questions about accountability among our best-known and loved political heroes. The questions about whether previous administrations will be held accountable is a symptom of larger issues around transparency and accountability in our federal government.