Should the White House be allowed to scrub an embarrassing moment for the press secretary from the public record of the briefing?
That’s the question that rises over a battle between the White House press corps and the Obama White House over two words said by White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.
“No Kevin,” Earnest replied, after he was asked by Fox News reporter Kevin Corke if he could “state categorically that no senior official in this administration has ever lied publicly about any aspect of the Iran nuclear deal.”
After ABC News caught the White House scrubbing the record, White House reporters Kevin Corke, Byron Tau, and James Rosen challenged Earnest on the issue.
But the press secretary has remained defiant after insisting falsely that the moment was inaudible due to crosstalk. When pressed on the issue, he finally admitted that no, he would not restore the transcript to reflect the truth of what happened during the briefing.
Watch the video below for the tale of the deleted transcript: