Sanders Blasts Leak of 'He's Dying' Comment

Press secretary says leak was selfish and distracting
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted May 12, 2018 5:35 PM CDT
'He's Dying Anyway': Sanders Scolds Team for Leak
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders listens to a reporter's question during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, Friday, May 11, 2018.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told staffers Friday that an aide's recent comment about Sen. John McCain was inappropriate but shouldn't have been leaked to the media, the AP reports. Sanders told communications' staffers in a private meeting that it was inappropriate for aide Kelly Sadler to dismiss McCain's opinion during a recent closed-door meeting because, Sadler said, "he's dying anyway." McCain is battling an aggressive form of brain cancer.

Sanders said the leak was selfish and distracted from the president's agenda and his welcoming home of three Americans detained in North Korea and an upcoming summit with Kim Jong Un. That's according to a person familiar with the meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe that private meeting. Sanders declined to condemn Sadler's comments Friday, saying she wouldn't "validate a leak" from an internal staff meeting.

(More Sarah Huckabee Sanders stories.)

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