Former President Donald Trump faced backlash on Wednesday from his right-wing opponents after he referred to his former press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, as “milktoast.” During an episode of “Outnumbered” that McEnany co-hosted, Trump criticized her, accusing her of exaggerating his polling lead in Iowa against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
In a tweet, Trump wrote, “Kayleigh ‘Milktoast’ [sic] McEnany just gave out the wrong poll numbers on FoxNews [sic],” misspelling “milquetoast.” He compared his own polling lead to DeSantis, stating that he was currently 34 points ahead while acknowledging that 25 points was still impressive but not 34. He claimed that McEnany was aware of the polling organization’s inflated numbers and criticized her for using inaccurate information on Fox News.
McEnany, who is now 35 years old and a Fox News contributor, served as the White House press secretary from April 2020 until the end of Trump’s presidency. Despite her loyalty and impressive track record as a press secretary, Trump’s criticism drew outrage from various quarters.
Co-host Brian Kilmeade on “Fox & Friends” defended McEnany on Wednesday morning, praising her as “one of the best press secretaries ever” and emphasizing her current role as an analyst. He found Trump’s remarks towards her unnecessary and childish. Fox News senior political analyst Brit Hume also criticized Trump’s attack on McEnany, calling it a disgrace in a tweet.
Matt Wolking, a former deputy director of communications for Trump who now works with a political organization supporting DeSantis, tweeted that Trump’s criticism of McEnany was nonsensical and unfair.
Despite the backlash, McEnany received support from Jenna Ellis, a former legal counsel to Trump. Ellis tweeted that anyone questioning why McEnany and “many others” wouldn’t return for the 2024 campaign could find their answer in her tweet.
During an episode of “The Ingraham Angle” where McEnany filled in as a host, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who has endorsed DeSantis for president, took a jab at Trump by using the word “milquetoast” in reference to a debt ceiling arrangement between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden. McEnany chose to ignore the remark and did not respond.
In April, Trump reshared a post from McEnany praising one of his interviews and mocking her previous support for DeSantis’s presidential candidacy.
These recent events have sparked controversy and discussions surrounding Trump’s criticism of his former press secretary, leaving some questioning the specificity of Tuesday’s poll discussion.
