The White House beat is one of the most coveted perches in journalism.
On an almost daily basis, White House reporters are given the opportunity to question someone who speaks for the most powerful person in the world — and occasionally, to question that person themselves.
That level of responsibility should preclude any reporter worthy of the name from squandering their opportunity on inane, self-serving questions of the kind of that Jim Acosta made a name for himself asking during the first Trump administration.
But with some laudable exceptions aside, White House reporters show up to the briefing room premises securely in hand, and proceed from those premises to either attack the administration’s every move for the benefit of a viral clip or, conversely, to fete the president and provide his spokesperson with an opportunity to explain once again why, yes, he really is the best we’ve ever had.
This cheerleaders-vs.-attack-dog dynamic reliably creates a spectacle that’s unworthy of a self-governing republic, which is why it’s so important that National Review continues to disrupt the proceedings with fair minded questions of the kind that our Audrey Fahlberg specializes in.
This is where you, our generous readers, come in. Without you, we would not have been able to send Audrey earlier this month to accompany President Trump to Mar-a-Lago on Air Force One. Audrey got on the plane with no agenda other than pursuing the truth and informing our readers. She managed to do a great job of it, too, filling our audience in on the latest with the trade war that was just then kicking off. And, just for good measure, she topped off the trip with a first-person Corner post peeling back the curtain on what it’s like to fly on Air Force One.
Just this week, Audrey questioned Trump at the White House on the story that’s currently consuming Washington, pressing the president on whether anyone will be fired for the monumental screw-up of adding Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg to a group chat in which top administration officials were discussing an imminent airstrike on the Houthis in Yemen.
Trump’s response: “It’s just something that can happen.”
As if that weren’t enough for a day’s work, Audrey also broke the news that Trump supports a rescissions package that would codify some of the cuts that have been recommended by the Department of Government Efficiency.
Again, Audrey would not be able to do this incredibly important work without you.
If you appreciate having someone in the White House who is willing to do the job the way it’s supposed to be done, please consider donating to our spring webathon.