The new Air Force One, a plane gifted by the Qatari government, taxis near the old Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., July 1, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper
The White House's top spokesman went after one of the reporters behind a story on President Donald Trump's abrupt Air Force One switch, branding her a liar and questioning whether she even counts as a journalist.
Communications director Steven Cheung, known for his fiery outbursts, wrote on X that "Carol Leonnig is a liar and this article is complete Fake News," referring to an MS NOW report that said Trump abandoned his Qatari-gifted jet on the flight from the NATO summit in Turkey to the United Kingdom over security concerns tied to escalating strikes on Iran.
"She has no idea what she is talking about. She says the White House declined to comment. Not true. We gave comment to the New York Times and many other outlets. Carol is not a real journalist. A complete fraud," Cheung railed.
An MS NOW network spokesperson told Raw Story the network stands by its reporting.
The White House issued statements to several news organizations, including one from Cheung.
“The new Air Force One is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff,” Cheung said in a statement to outlets including The Hill. “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we use every tool at our disposal — including distraction and misdirection — to address those threats,” he added.
Leonnig is a longtime investigative reporter and multiple Pulitzer Prize winner whose byline ran on the report alongside Priya Sridhar and Ken Dilanian.
The story Cheung attacked said Trump flew home on the original Air Force One because the retrofitted Qatari plane lacks secure communications and missile defenses. An MS NOW panel separately picked apart the shifting explanations for the swap.
Trump has said he is "No. 1 on the kill list for Iran."