Trump says he may move White House press corps to new location

What the report says

US President Donald Trump said he may relocate the White House press corps to a different spot, possibly away from the executive residence, in comments reported by Al Jazeera on Friday. He also dismissed earlier reports that he wanted to eliminate the White House briefing room to restore a historic swimming pool underneath it, calling those claims false, while suggesting the journalists who cover him could be moved to “a less obnoxious location.”

The report said the idea follows a New York Times account that Trump had previously discussed shifting reporters out of the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room. That proposal did not advance during the tenure of former press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who left the role on August 27. Leavitt later said Trump was “flirting” with restoring the pool, though she said she did not know whether he would follow through.

The possible change comes during a tense period between Trump and the media. Last month, his administration barred CNN, MS NOW and POLITICO from the White House before a federal judge said the move was likely unconstitutional and access was restored. Trump has also publicly criticized reporters at events, including a recent exchange with The Independent’s White House correspondent.

Al Jazeera noted that any move would fit a broader pattern of White House alterations under Trump, including work on the East Wing, the Rose Garden and the South Lawn. The briefing room itself was built above the old pool in the 1970s, according to the report.