Donald Trump delivered a surprise press conference from James Brady Briefing Room on November 24. According to numerous reporters, including Politico’s Meredith McGraw and CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, there were only given a 2-minute heads up before the press conference started at 12:30 p.m. Eastern time. The press conference itself lasted only 64 seconds.
During the short briefing on Tuesday, Trump praised the recent spike in the stock market and the upcoming COVID-19 vaccine.
“I just want to congratulate everybody,” Trump says. “The stock market Dow Jones Industrial Average just hit 30,000, which is the highest in history. We’ve never broken 30,000 and that’s despite everything that’s taken place with the pandemic.”
With Vice President Mike Pence standing by his side, Trump continued, “I’m very thrilled with what’s happened with the vaccine front. That’s been absolutely incredible. Nothing like that has ever happened medically.”
“I think people are acknowledging that’s having a big effect but the stock market just broken 30,000 — never been broken that number. That’s a sacred number 30,000 — nobody thought they’d ever see it. That’s the ninth time since the beginning of 2020. And it’s the 48th time that we’ve broken records in, during the Trump administration.
“And I just want to congratulate all the people within the administration that work so hard,” Trump continued. “And most importantly, I want to congratulate the people of our country because there are no people like you. Thank you very much.”
The president took no questions from the media.
CNN’s Jim Acosta Described Trump’s Presser as ‘The Weirdest’ Thing He’s Ever Seen ‘in The White House Briefing Room’
Following the brief speech, CNN’s Jim Acosta described Trump’s presser as “the strangest, weirdest thing I’ve ever seen in The White House briefing room,” and the chaos of White House staffers shouting at reporters to get into the briefing room on short notice.
“He wanted to walk into the briefing room before we were in our seats,” Acosta noted, a major shift from the normal procedure of White House press briefings where the president enters after all media is set up and seated.
Bloomberg’s Jordan Fabian tweeted that Trump’s presser today was “one of the stranger presidential briefing room appearances,” he’s ever seen. “He did not speak about the presidential transition or any plans to concede.”
Daniel W. Drezner, a contributor to The Washington Post tweeted, “I swear to f****** God Trump came into the White House press room to announce that the Dow Jones had risen above 30,000. He spoke for maybe a minute and then left without taking questions. What a clown show.”
Trump Has Refused to Take Reporters’ Questions Since Election Day
President Trump just came to the briefing room. He highlighted the Dow cracking 30,000 and progress toward coronavirus vaccines, then congratulated “the people of the country” and left.
He spoke for less than two minutes and took no questions.
Via @Jordanfabian
Trump did not take questions after his surprise press conference on Tuesday, and while Pence was also present, he did not speak. Without taking reporters’ questions, something he has refused to do since Election Day, according to CNN’s Betsy Klein, political journalists expressed their confusion on Twitter as to why Trump held today’s presser at all.
President Trump just came to the briefing room. He highlighted the Dow cracking 30,000 and progress toward coronavirus vaccines, then congratulated “the people of the country” and left.
He spoke for less than two minutes and took no questions.
Via @Jordanfabian
It’s been three weeks since President Trump took a question from reporters. He just abruptly appeared in the briefing room to tout the Dow passing the 30,000 milestone for the first time, then left.
PBS NewsHour host Yamiche Alcindor tweeted, “Very, very odd. Just as quickly as President Trump came into the briefing room, he left without taking questions and after praising his administration’s work. He spoke briefly about the stock market gains and the COVID vaccine.”
Alcindor then tweeted, “Pres Trump hasn’t taken a Q from reporters in about three weeks — ever since he became the projected loser of the 2020 election. Yet, there are so many questions including the key one: -Why won’t you concede this election and stop undermining the integrity of U.S. democracy?”
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