I am pleased to announce @StephGrisham45 will be the next @PressSec & Comms Director! She has been with us since 2015 – @potus & I can think of no better person to serve the Administration & our country. Excited to have Stephanie working for both sides of the @WhiteHouse. #BeBest
— Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) June 25, 2019
What do former Attorney General Tom Horne, former Arizona Speaker of the House David Gowan, and President Donald Trump have in common?
All three have relied on Stephanie Grisham to be their media spokesperson.
Grisham, who was just named the 30th White House Press Secretary (she will also be the Communications Director), has a long Arizona history starting with her work for Tom Horne when he served as Attorney General. After her work for Horne she served as Media Spokesperson for the Majority Caucus in the Arizona House of Representatives under Speaker Gowan. In both positions she had to deal with an aggressive press corps trying to do damage to her bosses, which seems like perfect training for her new position.
Most members of the media say that Grisham is tough but fair. They consider her loyal to her boss and she’s not the kind of press secretary who will give you information you’re not supposed to have just to curry favor at the expense of her employer. She also has little tolerance for those who are deceitful, which has landed more than a few people in hot water.
In 2015 Grisham took several leaves from her job at the State House to travel with the Trump campaign and work his campaign rallies, making her one of the earliest members of Team Trump. When Trump won election she moved to Washington D.C. and ended up as a Deputy Press Secretary under Sean Spicer, then became the Communications Director for First Lady Melania Trump. As many of Trump’s original team have left the White House, Grisham has found herself one of the longest tenured Team Trump members left.
It is good to see someone with deep Arizona roots make it to the top of her profession, and it will be a unique experience to watch press conferences featuring someone we watched in Arizona, “back in the day!”