What to Know
After hearing what White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt had to say about President Donald Trump’s Davos speech, people are calling her a “professional liar.” According to her, people loved it, which definitely seems like a stretch considering Trump insulted other countries and talked about acquiring Greenland.
During his speech, Trump boasted about how he thinks he has improved the United States and named several countries that “should be grateful” to the U.S. He also spoke about acquiring Greenland, but mistakenly referred to it as Iceland multiple times. Additionally, Trump repeatedly called the world’s largest island “a piece of ice.” And somehow, he suggested that wanting to control Greenland is actually a small ask. “We want a piece of ice for world protection,” he said at one point. “And they won’t give it.” Elsewhere in the speech, he said, “All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland.”
Staying true to character, he also referred to the U.S. as “the hottest country anywhere in the world” (and took credit for that, of course) and talked about people calling him “daddy.”
But according to Leavitt, people loved the speech.
The 28-year-old press secretary managed to put a positive spin on this speech. She told Fox News that people were “very pleased with his speech” and that “it has rave reviews because the president just tells it like it is.”
Leavitt continued, “He came here with his ‘America First’ vision on full display: how the American economy is booming once again, through massive deregulation, an energy boom, the president fulfilling his promise to drill, baby, drill. You look at the tax cuts he signed into law. All of these things coming together to put together a really exceptional American economy and I think he’s really inspiring a lot of leaders in Europe to take that same approach.”
She also claimed that Trump did not call Greenland Iceland.
Even though everyone heard Trump say “Iceland,” Leavitt told a reporter that this did not actually happen. Per The New York Times, she said, “No he didn’t. His written remarks referred to Greenland as a ‘piece of ice’ because that’s what it is. You’re the only one mixing anything up here.”
In his speech, Trump really did refer to the island as a “piece of ice” — but he also called it Iceland. Leavitt’s ability to explain and justify Trump’s unhinged behavior with a totally straight face is almost shocking to people. Reacting to Leavitt’s comments on Reddit, one person wrote, “I don’t like her, but also have to admit she’s an incredibly skilled bulls—-er – there are very few people who could do what she does for the Trump administration, as well as she does it.”
Many people agreed that Leavitt knows exactly what she’s doing, which might actually be worse because she’s “complicit.” Someone else argued, “She is knowingly and purposefully spreading lies to cover for Donald J Trump.” Another person called Leavitt a “professional liar working for a pathological liar.”
But Greenland/Iceland aside, others couldn’t get over the way she chose to describe Trump’s speech. “Rave reviews?” a critic wrote. “That seems out of place when discussing world politics.”
