President Donald Trump held the first Cabinet meeting of his second term on Wednesday, Feb. 26, and it ended with a hot mic moment.
Following the recent announcement by Trump’s administration that they would be hand-picking the members of the White House press pool, there were several new faces as well as notable exclusions from the meeting.
Right-wing outlets Newsmax and Blaze Media were included in Wednesday’s meeting, as was Fox & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones. Meanwhile, The Associated Press is still on the outs with the Trump administration over their “Gulf of America” dispute.
President Donald Trump speaks at the Feb. 26 Cabinet meeting in the White House. Andrew Harnik/Getty
While the AP didn’t have a reporter in the room, they did broadcast a live stream of the meeting, which continued after the official White House stream cut off. The final seconds of the AP’s stream are when Trump was heard addressing Jones and asking for positive coverage.
“Lawrence! Look at Lawrence! This guy’s making a fortune!” the president exclaimed as reporters began shuffling out of the room. “He never had it so good.”
After the two spoke briefly, Trump pleaded, “Lawrence, say we did a great job, please. Okay? Say it was unbelievable.”
On Thursday’s Fox & Friends, Jones didn’t directly quote the president, however, he and his co-hosts were effusive in their praise of the first Cabinet meeting.
“These are guys that normally — and gals — are used to communicating their ideas,” Jones said. “They share the vision of the president and they are communicating it in such a succinct way. I don’t think we have seen this ever in an administration.”
President Donald Trump smiles during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Feb. 26, 2025. Andrew Harnik/Getty
The changes to the White House press pool were announced on Tuesday, Feb. 25, with Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt revealing that the White House Correspondents’ Association would no longer choose which outlets attend certain presidential events, as they have for decades.
“Moving forward, the White House press pool will be determined by the White House press team,” Leavitt declared.
The day prior, the White House shared a statement to its official website, which warned “asking the President of the United States questions in the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One is a privilege granted to journalists, not a legal right.”
“We stand by our decision to hold the Fake News accountable for their lies, and President Trump will continue to grant an unprecedented level of access to the press,” it continued. “This is the most transparent Administration in history.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt takes questions during the daily briefing on Jan. 28, 2025. ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty
The following day, WHCA president Eugene Daniels sent an email to the members of the organization about the changes. He revealed that the Trump administration had not spoken to the WHCA about the changes, “nor have they given us additional insight into what these changes will mean for all of you.”
“What I do know is that this board will not assist any attempt by this administration or any other in taking over independent press coverage of the White House,” Daniels continued. “Each of your organizations will have to decide whether or not you will take part in these new, government-appointed pools.”
“I know there’s a lot to weigh, including the public interest, as we serve our audiences across the country and around the world. I wish we weren’t in this place,” he added.
