Trump campaign names Hogan Gidley as new press secretary
The Trump campaign has named Hogan Gidley as its new press secretary, replacing Kayleigh McEnany, who became the White House press secretary in April. Gidley is currently the principal deputy press secretary at the White House.
"Hogan Gidley has been at the President's side for three years and now he joins the fight to re-elect him," campaign manager Brad Parscale said in a statement. "He is a talented advocate and defender of the President and his policies and is never afraid to go into battle with hostile reporters and television hosts. Hogan is a great addition to the team and makes us even stronger."
President Trump on Tuesday tweeted praise of Gidley, calling him a "strong, loyal and trusted member of the team." Mr. Trump said Gidley would be leaving the White House on July 1. Prior to working at the White House, Gidley was a Republican consultant and served as a contributor to CBS News.
Gidley's move to the campaign was announced after the president held his first campaign rally since March in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday. The rally had a lower than expected attendance.
CBS News reports that based on conversations with multiple current and former officials, the campaign is reevaluating next steps based on Saturday's rally, with turnout considered a major factor. But the "reevaluation" is also part of a larger, ongoing campaign shake-up.
While Saturday's "disappointing" show applied more pressure onto top campaign officials, this pressure is not entirely new.
One former senior Trump campaign official said campaign manager Brad Parscale is in a "terrible decline of confidence."
Fin Gomez and Nicole Sganga contributed to this report.