Sanders rebuts Mueller report allegations
Spokeswoman for Trump denies culture of White House lying
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s spokeswoman Sarah Sanders pushed back Friday against allegations that special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report exposed a culture of lying at the White House.
Sanders also disputed allegations that she personally misled the media and TV viewers when she said in 2017 that “countless” members of the FBI had lost confidence in FBI Director James Comey, which led to his firing.
Trump’s White House has given shifting accounts of the reason for Comey’s dismissal. Sanders told reporters that Comey had lost the confidence of rank-and-file members of the FBI who welcomed the decision.
The Mueller report says Sanders told the special counsel’s team her words were “a slip of the tongue.” The report also says she acknowledged the comment “was not founded on anything.”
But in an interview with Fox News on Thursday night, Sanders said, “I used the word ‘countless,’ but it’s not untrue.”
On Friday, Sanders told ABC’s “Good Morning America” that “there were a number” of current and former members of the FBI who agreed with Trump’s decision.
ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Sanders on Friday whether there was “a culture of lying” at the White House.
“Actually, if you look at what I said, the slip of the tongue was in using the word ‘countless,’ ” Sanders said on “Good Morning America.” She repeated that her comment was made in the “heat of the moment,” meaning it wasn’t “a scripted talking point.”
She added, “I’m sorry I wasn’t a robot.”
Democratic House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler, also speaking on ABC, said Mueller’s report clearly outlines “a culture of lying” at the White House.