Stamford native holds first briefing as White House press secretary
White House Press Secretary and Stamford native Jennifer Psaki held her first press briefing Wednesday with a pool of reporters.
During her opening remarks, Psaki spoke of bringing “truth and transparency” from the executive branch back into the briefing room.
“There will be times when we see things differently in this room — I mean among all of us. That’s ok, that’s part of our democracy,” Psaki said.
She then laid out highlights from a flurry of 15 inaugural executive orders signed by President Joe Biden on Wednesday, which included reversing former President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of the U.S. from the World Health Organization, ending Trump’s ban on travelers from several Muslim-majority nations, and rejoining the Paris climate accord.
Afterwards, Psaki fielded questions from reporters, who asked about Biden’s plans to speak with world leaders in the coming days, and priorities for confirming the members of his cabinet.
Several reporters asked whether Biden would be able to find bipartisan support for his proposed coronavirus relief package, slated to cost 1.9 trillion.
Some reporters noted Republicans in Congress have balked at that high price tag, notably Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, widely viewed as a moderate.
Psaki said Biden’s “clear preference” is “to move forward with a bipartisan bill.” But she said the administration “would not take any tools off the table” when it came to getting the package through both houses of Congress.
Psaki, who graduated from Stamford High School in 1996, was named Biden’s pick for White House press secretary in November. She was deputy press secretary and deputy communications director in the Obama administration before leaving for a stint in public relations.
She rejoined the White House team in 2015.