Leavitt responded to the clip on X (formerly Twitter), writing, “Todd is the best!” alongside a laughing emoji.
WASHINGTON, DC: On Tuesday, September 15, Attorney General Todd Blanche appeared ready to leave a Rose Garden briefing when he suddenly shifted from defending the Trump administration’s election policies to praising former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
His closing remarks turned an otherwise heavy appearance into a lighter exchange, complete with a teasing comment about reporters sweating in the heat and a blunt declaration that he had stayed longer than planned.
Blanche Praises Karoline Leavitt
Blanche began wrapping up the briefing by making it clear that he would not take any more questions.
“Can I just say I’m done with questions,” he said. “I stayed ten minutes longer than I was supposed to.”
He then credited Karoline Leavitt for handling White House press briefings for as long as she did.
“I will tell you, the fact that Karoline Leavitt did this for as long as she did is incredible,” Blanche said before thanking reporters for allowing him to appear.
“I’m very sorry that you’re sweating,” Blanche told the journalists gathered outside. “I’m not really sorry.”
He then returned to praising Leavitt, publicly thanking her for her work on behalf of President Donald Trump.
“She’s a lot better than me,” Blanche said, comparing his brief appearance to Leavitt’s regular briefings.
Leavitt responded to the clip on X, writing, “Todd is the best!” alongside a laughing emoji.
DOJ Defends Election Investigations
Blanche’s lighter exchange with reporters came after a briefing dominated by questions about elections and the Justice Department’s next steps following a Supreme Court ruling affecting the administration’s handling of mail-in voting.
The official said the department would abide by the ruling while maintaining that the administration still has a broad role to play in protecting election integrity.
“We’re of course going to comply with the Supreme Court’s decision, as we always do,” Blanche told reporters.
He stressed that complying with the court’s ruling would not stop the administration from pursuing its election-related efforts.
“That doesn’t mean that we’re not going to do everything in this administration that we can to make sure that there are free and fair elections,” he said.
Blanche also argued that the ruling does not prevent the Justice Department from investigating potential violations of federal voting laws, adding that criminal probes into alleged unlawful voting would continue despite the court’s decision.