The White House is banning phones and “personal devices” from the West Wing the day after a flood of embarrassing stories from the book of a writer granted insider access.
Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders cited “security” as the reason for the change, announced in a statement Thursday.
“The security and integrity of the technology systems at the White House is a top priority for the Trump administration and therefore starting next week the use of all personal devices for both guests and staff will no longer be allowed in the West Wing,” the statement read.
“Staff will be able to conduct business on their government-issued devices and continue working hard on behalf of the American people.”
The change comes after news outlets published reports based on the upcoming book “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” by reporter Michael Wolff.
Wolff said he was able to take up “something like a semi-permanent seat on a couch in the West Wing” in an arrangement blessed by President Donald Trump and unrestrained by clear rules on his access.
The White House reacted angrily to the “trashy tabloid fiction” of reports that included a barrage of quotations from former strategist Steve Bannon calling a meeting led by Donald Trump Jr. with Russians “treasonous” and labeling Jared Kushner’s business dealings “greasy.”
Trump said in a statement that Bannon had “lost his mind” after leaving the administration in August, and a lawyer for the president reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to the former aide.
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