She’s new on the job as White House Press Secretary but Stephanie Grisham has already created headlines of her own. Reporters on the scene of President Trump’s meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un claimed that Grisham was bruised up during a confrontation with North Korean guards.
Grisham suffered bruises when a scuffle broke out Sunday between North Korean security guards and members of the media trying to get close to President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as they shook hands at the Demilitarized Zone, the Associated Press reported.
The new press secretary was reportedly pushing back against the guards, trying to help members of the White House press corps position themselves to cover the historic moment between Trump and Kim.
Several reporters tweeted about the clash between the guards and the media.
This is the moment White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham got into a scuffle with North Korean security guards who were blocking US journalists pic.twitter.com/WSBkdDw17g
— The Hardy Report (@EdwardTHardy) June 30, 2019
A source told CNN’s Jim Acosta that “an all-out brawl” broke out as Grisham tried to manage the White House press pool’s access. I know. Don’t get hung up on the reporter.
A source on the scene said Grisham got in “an all out brawl” with the North Koreans, adding that she was bruised a bit in the scuffle.
Grisham was doing her job, by my reading of the situation. Apparently, the North Korean guards got overly-aggressive with her as she tried to coordinate the press pool’s movement to document a historic moment – President Trump set foot on North Korean soil
Trump, Kim Jung-un, and South Korean President Moon Jae-in met for about 50 minutes inside the Freedom House at the Korean demilitarized zone (DMZ). Treasury Secretary Mnuchin, Presidential advisers Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner sat in for part of the meeting. After the meeting, Trump and Moon escorted Kim Jung-un back over the border as he returned to North Korean soil. Then the two men addressed the press.
“Speed is not the object, we want to see if we can do a really comprehensive, good deal,” Trump said. “This was a great day. This was a very legendary, historic day.”
He quoted Kim as saying that “just the meeting is historic.”
Grisham continued on in her role with the press pool after being roughed-up. Bloomberg White House Correspondent Jennifer Jacobs said the incident “came to body blows.” She described the chaos of the moment on Twitter.
To add to madcap day at DMZ, the North Korean security was a little overzealous, at times trying to block US reporters’ view.
New WH press secretary Stephanie Grisham threw herself into it to make sure the US TV camera got into House of Freedom, and it came to body blows. pic.twitter.com/LYWhbJFkF5
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) June 30, 2019
North Korean guards are notoriously agressive and brutal. If these meetings continue, as President Trump hopes they will, maybe Stephanie Grisham should put in for combat pay.
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