In what made for some entertaining headlines, Former White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany’s husband became embroiled in a chaotic press briefing back in December 2020. It was reportedly the first time McEnany’s husband, Sean Gilmartin, attended one of her briefings, and shortly after it ended, news outlets were running with the story that the event had been a particularly tumultuous one. Early reports indicated that McEnany, who has been accused of some shady things over the years, had her husband to blame for the controversy.

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Rumors were rife that Gilmartin got into a spat with New York Times photographer Doug Mills, who criticized the former baseball player for not wearing a mask. Several of President Donald Trump’s cabinet members tested positive for COVID-19 during the height of the pandemic, including McEnany herself, but White House staffers rarely wore masks. The Daily Mail painted the encounter between Gilmartin and Mills as disruptive, describing it as “a bickering match” while a White House press pool report confirmed that Gilmartin was in breach of COVID protocols during his wife’s briefing. 

“Kayleigh McEnany’s husband, Sean Gilmartin, was present during the news briefing in the rear of the briefing room and maskless,” the report read, per The Independent. Mills, who didn’t know Gilmartin was the press secretary’s husband, was told off by a White House staff-member for calling out the former baseball player, but the photographer wouldn’t budge, reasoning simply, “It doesn’t matter who he is.” In what was an incredibly ironic turn of events, McEnany accused the Democratic party of being hypocritical during this very same briefing before reminding the gathered reporters that wearing a mask is one of the best ways to avoid contracting the deadly virus.

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Former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany has weathered several tragedies, and making headlines for all the wrong reasons during a tumultuous time in history was definitely one of them. Both she and her husband, Sean Gilmartin, attempted to do some damage control after her disastrous 25-minute press briefing dominated headlines because of her husband’s lack of a mask during the proceedings. Gilmartin clarified to the New York Post that he never actually spoke to Doug Mills, despite several members of the White House’s press pool recalling their brief, yet highly contentious, encounter.

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“During the entirety of the briefing, I was never asked to wear a mask by anyone,” the former baseball player proclaimed. “When the briefing concluded, a New York Times photographer loudly said to wear a mask next time after I had passed him and when I was a few steps from exiting the room.” Gilmartin claimed that he didn’t respond to the comment and, moreover, he would have gladly worn a mask if someone had asked him to. Several reporters concurred that there wasn’t what they would necessarily call a testy encounter between Gilmartin and Mills.

McEnany, meanwhile, addressed rumors that her husband had shouted, “You crushed it, Kayleigh!” after she finished speaking head on. CNN picked up this element of the story, with Anderson Cooper initially reporting on it. But it turned out to be somewhat inaccurate. Gilmartin never cheered for his wife; podcaster Alec Lace, who hosts “First Class Fatherhood,” was the one who shouted the compliment, and he later admitted to it on social media. McEnany jumped on X, formerly known as Twitter, to scold CNN: “FAKE NEWS from @CNN that is disproven by the official White House Pool Report written by a reporter.” She added, “WATCH @andersoncooper FALSELY claim my husband cheered for me at the White House Press Briefing.”

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