Covering Trump: Recent Episodes
Ricochet
Former White House correspondent Deb Saunders looks back on the never-dull experience of covering President Donald J. Trump.
To round out the Covering Trump podcast, we’ve put host Debra Saunders in the guest chair. Fellow newsie James Lileks is gets her elaborations on the unique world of the White House beat—made all the more unique for the unprecedented President she was covering. They bond over being the “weird” ones in a newsroom with a large consensus; Debra describes the kabuki that takes place in the briefing... Source
To round out the Covering Trump podcast, we've put host Debra Saunders in the guest chair. Fellow newsie James Lileks is gets her elaborations on the unique world of the White House beat—made all the more unique for the unprecedented President she was covering. They bond over being the "weird" ones in a newsroom with a large consensus; Debra describes the kabuki that takes place in the briefing room; she explains the challenges Trump's staff went through, along with the ones she had as a reporter hoping to get in a fair question. Join us one last time as we delve into White House press corp and the world of Donald Trump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Of all necessary qualities that make a reporter, persistence is paramount. It took four press secretaries and more than three and a half years for Debra to score her exclusive interview with President Donald J. Trump. But she got it. In the whistle-stop motion of Trump on the campaign trail, her one-on-one wasn’t quite what she expected. Listen in for the hard-won scoop! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Now we go back to the early days of 2020 when America confronted a great unknown, a plague that eventually would take more than a million American lives. The country did not set aside partisan differences in the face of a scary new enemy. Some stayed at home. Others scoffed at the threat. Trump delivered a vaccine in record time. Relive the lock down, the mask controversies, the waves of positive Covid tests that walloped the West Wing. California locked up and Trump still held rallies. It was, after all, an election year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
During the four years Debra Saunders covered the White House, she was in for a trip around the world with Donald Trump. There were legs on presidential motorcades and even Air Force One. From Riyadh to Singapore and Warsaw to Las Vegas, she witnessed the president breaking the presidential travel playbook on four continents. Debra was a witness to Trump’s unorthodox approach in dealing with allies and adversaries alike; along with his unfailing enjoyment of children. There were perfect conversations, leaked conversations, mercurial speeches and some good jokes along the way. Buckle up for a bumpy ride. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Donald Trump's inauguration was one like no other. From his talk of American carnage to the belligerent mobs who heckled his supporters, it was a peculiar scene that kicked off an unusual presidency. It was also the beginning of a novelty in the news cycle. Twitter gave the vociferous Commander in Chief his own press briefing room, and Debra wades into how this left the media, critics and his own team, scrambling to translate. Let's just say this complicated things... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
How exactly does a regional reporter shine through the shadows of big cable stars? It's no cakewalk, but our host Debra Saunders fought star power with star power and accepted the flak that came with a question about the Oscars. In the highly competitive territory of covering the White House, getting the administration's attention is the game. From the stresses of "pool reporting" and the little details that put readers in the action to hustling for occasional purpose, Deb gives us a glimpse of how the game is played. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
There are career changes and then there are career changes. When Debra Saunders repositioned from conservative columnist to White House correspondent, she might have assumed it would be something like the former. But Donald Trump has a tendency of altering expectations. Unmarred by the self-seeking character typical of accounts by those deorbited from Trump's gravity, her story involves the highs of cadging a ride on Air Force One to the lows of cramped work spaces and vying for a question from the back of James S. Brady Press Briefing Room. With it all in hindsight, Deb recounts her four years(!) of covering the biggest news story. Let's begin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Debra J. Sunders has been a mainstay on the nation's editorial pages for decades. She made a name for herself as one of the Bay Area's strongest conservative media voices with her column in The San Francisco Chronicle, which was also distributed throughout the country by Creators Syndicate.
Then in 2017 she started a new chapter in her life, as a rookie White House Correspondent for The Las Vegas Review-Journal, covering a presidency the likes of which we've never seen. To say covering Donald Trump was a wild ride is an understatement. She has sat in front of the mic and recorded her experiences in Covering Trump: War Stories from the White House Press Corps. The series debuts on the Ricochet Audio Network with Episode 1 tomorrow, October 11th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices