Kayleigh McEnany facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kayleigh McEnany
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McEnany in 2022
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| 33rd White House Press Secretary | |
| In office April 7, 2020 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Deputy | Hogan Gidley Brian R. Morgenstern |
| Preceded by | Stephanie Grisham |
| Succeeded by | Jen Psaki |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Kayleigh Michelle McEnany
April 18, 1988 Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Sean Gilmartin
(m. 2017) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Georgetown University (BS) St Edmund Hall, Oxford Harvard University (JD) |
| Occupation | Political commentator, television personality, writer |
Kayleigh McEnany (born April 18, 1988) is an American writer and TV personality. She is known for sharing her political opinions. From April 2020 to January 2021, she worked for Donald Trump. She was his 33rd White House press secretary. This job means she spoke for the President to the news.
At first, she didn't support Donald Trump in the 2016 election. But later, she became one of his strongest supporters. In 2017, she became a national spokesperson for the Republican National Committee. This is a big group that helps the Republican Party. She also worked for Trump's 2020 election campaign.
McEnany started her media career as a producer for a TV show called Huckabee on Fox News. Later, she was a commentator on CNN. After working for President Trump, she returned to Fox News. She is now a co-host of the show Outnumbered. She also often hosts other shows like The Ingraham Angle and Fox & Friends.
Contents
Early Life and School
Kayleigh McEnany was born on April 18, 1988, in Tampa, Florida. She grew up there with her parents, Michael and Leanne McEnany. Her father owned a roofing company.
She went to a private Catholic school in Tampa called the Academy of the Holy Names. After high school, she studied international politics at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.. She also studied for a time at St Edmund Hall, Oxford in England. While there, she learned about politics from Nick Thomas-Symonds. He later became a British politician.
After graduating from Georgetown, McEnany worked for three years. She was a producer for the Mike Huckabee Show. She then went to law school at the University of Miami School of Law. After one year, she moved to Harvard Law School. She graduated from Harvard in 2016.
Her Career Path
While in college, McEnany gained experience in politics. She interned for politicians like George W. Bush. She also worked in the White House Office of Communications. There, she helped write news updates for the media.
Working in Media
While in law school, McEnany appeared on CNN. She was a paid commentator. She supported Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election.
However, in early 2015, before she supported Trump, she was critical of him. She said on TV that he was a "showman." She also called his comments about Mexican immigrants "racist." Later, she changed her mind and became a strong supporter.
On August 5, 2017, McEnany left her job at CNN. The next day, she hosted a short online show. It was called Real News Update on Trump's Facebook page. She praised Trump in the show.
People who worked with her have praised her skills. Her former boss, Mike Huckabee, called her a "meticulous researcher." He also said she was "extraordinarily prepared." Van Jones, who worked with her at CNN, noted her quick success. He said few people achieve what she has in such a short time.
Republican Political Work
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McEnany has been involved with the Republican Party since college. She often spoke about politics. In 2012, she posted tweets about Barack Obama's birthplace. This was part of a movement that questioned if he was born in the U.S.
In 2017, she became the national spokesperson for the Republican National Committee (RNC). As RNC spokeswoman, she supported Trump. This was after his comments about a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. She tweeted that the Republican Party supported Trump's "message of love and inclusiveness."
In August 2019, a newspaper reported that Trump had made many false statements. McEnany told CNN that she didn't believe the president had lied.
Before becoming White House press secretary, McEnany praised Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. She said, "This president will always put America first." She also said, "We will not see diseases like the coronavirus come here." This statement was made when the virus was already in the U.S.
White House Press Secretary (2020–2021)
In April 2020, McEnany was hired as the White House press secretary. This happened after Mark Meadows became the White House chief of staff. She took over from Stephanie Grisham.
Two months into her job, the Associated Press wrote about McEnany. They said she was ready to defend the president's views. She also defended his most obvious mistakes.
In April 2020, McEnany defended Trump's claims. He said the World Health Organization (WHO) favored China. She said the WHO put Americans at risk. She claimed they repeated "inaccurate claims peddled by China."
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On May 1, 2020, McEnany held her first public press briefing. A reporter asked her if she would ever lie from the podium. McEnany replied, "I will never lie to you. You have my word on that."
She also said that President Trump "always sided on the side of data" regarding the coronavirus pandemic. She also incorrectly claimed that the Mueller Report had "completely exonerated" President Trump. The report actually stated it did not conclude he committed a crime, but also did not exonerate him.
In May 2020, McEnany defended Trump's claims about vote by mail. She repeated his claims that it leads to "voter fraud." However, McEnany herself had voted by mail many times.
In June 2020, she defended the decision to remove peaceful protesters. This happened so Trump could take a photo in front of St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square. She compared Trump's action to Winston Churchill during World War II.
On September 9, 2020, audio recordings of Trump were released. In them, Trump told journalist Bob Woodward he was intentionally playing down the virus. McEnany then falsely said, "The president never downplayed the virus." Trump had said in a recorded interview, "I wanted to always play it down."
On October 5, 2020, McEnany tested positive for COVID-19. She had spoken with the press without a mask. This happened even after she had interacted with people diagnosed with the virus.
After the 2020 Election
While votes were still being counted, McEnany falsely declared Trump had won the election. After Joe Biden won, and Trump refused to accept it, McEnany spread false claims of fraud. She claimed Trump was not given an "orderly transition of power."
However, in 2016, Trump had thanked Obama for his "gracious aid" during his own transition. Trump also fired his own transition team leader. He rejected help from the Obama administration.
Later Career
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On March 2, 2021, McEnany joined Fox News. She became an on-air contributor. Later, she was named a co-host of Outnumbered. She hosts the show with Harris Faulkner and Emily Compagno.
In May and June 2023, she was a temporary host for Fox News Tonight. This was after Tucker Carlson left the show.
Personal Life
McEnany married Sean Gilmartin in November 2017. He is a baseball pitcher. They have two children. Their daughter was born in November 2019. Their son was born in December 2022.
In 2018, McEnany had a preventive surgery. This was because she had a high risk of developing breast cancer.
Images for kids
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A robot for kids.
See also
In Spanish: Kayleigh McEnany para niños
