CNN’s Scott Jennings ‘Secretly Met With White House’ About Press Secretary Role

CNN’s conservative commentator Scott Jennings has reportedly been secretly meeting with a top White House aide about taking over from Karoline Leavitt as White House press secretary.

As first reported by The Daily Beast, Jennings is said to be a frontrunner for the position, which becomes vacant at the end of the month when Leavitt steps down. Leavitt, who welcomed her second child with her husband, Nicholas Riccio, in May, said she is stepping away to spend more time with her family.

While Jennings has refused to comment on whether he is interested in the job, including dodging the question on-air, a new report claims the MAGA pundit has been meeting with Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, about taking on the position.

According to The Daily Mail, where Jennings serves as a columnist, he met with Wiles to discuss the role before Leavitt had even publicly announced she’d be stepping down. Three separate sources familiar with the selection process told the outlet that Jennings has met with Wiles on at least one more occasion since then.

One source said that Jennings and Wiles “speak often,” with another adding that the job is “his if he wants it,” and that “he does.”

The sources claim that the latest secret meeting took place this past weekend at Morton’s steakhouse in Washington, D.C., a short distance from the White House. Meanwhile, other candidates were trying to gain Trump’s attention at an event at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

“They were all trying to get in front of him this weekend. It was like The Apprentice,” one insider stated. “It reeks of desperation.”

The White House has denied any meetings took place between Jennings and Wiles, and so far, Jennings has not spoken publicly on the matter.

While the CNN NewsNight panelist is the reported frontrunner, the selection process is far from over. Insiders told the Mail that Trump would prefer to see another woman as press secretary. Aide Natalie Harp (35), whose close relationship with the president has attracted scrutiny in recent months, is speculated to be a favorite.

Other names reported to be in the running include Trump’s former attorney Alina Habba, current DHS press secretary Katie Zacharia, her predecessor Tricia McLaughlin, RNC spokesperson Elizabeth Pipko, Housing chief Bill Pulte, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung, Breitbart’s D.C. bureau chief Matthew Boyle, and former Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Davari.