'This isn't true': White House melts down over NYT report on JD Vance being sidelined

The White House erupted Saturday after the New York Times reported that Chief of Staff Susie Wiles had advised Vice President JD Vance to step back from social media, with Trump aides calling the story fabricated and accusing the paper of deliberately burying their denial.

The Times reported that Wiles "recently advised Mr. Vance to take a break from social media, as have other officials in the West Wing, according to people familiar with those interactions, because the fighting was beneath his office."

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung rejected the account in unusually sharp terms. "This isn't true," Cheung wrote on X. "We denied it to the New York Times and they refused to run our quote. Complete fake news. This supposed 'conversation' never happened."

Alex Bruesewitz, another Trump adviser, backed Cheung's account and used the episode to go on the offense. "White House Communications Director Steven Cheung has stated clearly in the article and reiterated on X that this is completely fake news," Bruesewitz wrote, adding that Vance is "an exceptionally effective communicator and an invaluable member of President Trump's team.

He closed with a line likely to become a recurring talking point: "Vance Derangement Syndrome is real, folks."

The Times story comes amid scrutiny of Vance's social media presence, which has at times drawn criticism even from conservative commentators.