White House spokesperson: Sarah Sanders will start doing daily briefings again when she 'finds a reason'

White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley on Tuesday defended White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders against complaints from Fox News that she had not held a briefing this year.

During an interview on the Fox News program America's Newsroom, host Sandra Smith asked Gidley why Sanders has held fewer and fewer briefings.

"Last we checked, there has not been one held this year," Smith noted. "Is there any plans to start that back up again -- to see Sarah Sanders back up at the podium?"

"She's going to come back when she finds a reason to do so," Gidley replied with a nervous laugh. "Because it's so funny, the media often tell us that when Sarah Sanders stands right behind me at this podium, 'Why can't we hear from the president? We need to hear more from the president.' So we put the president out, he speaks to the media every day. And then they say, 'Why can't we hear from Sarah Sanders?'"

"You can't win for losing," the deputy press secretary complained. "Sarah Sanders will absolutely be back at this podium talking to the press."

"But no definitive date?" Smith pressed.

Gidley, however, insisted that Sanders' briefings "never stopped."

"It's just sometimes we need to come to the podium to communicate things and sometimes we don't," Gidley said. "A lot of times when we don't come to the podium it's because the president has addressed the American people himself. I mean, he's the most accessible president in history."

Later on Tuesday, President Donald Trump said on Twitter that he had ordered Sanders to stop holding daily briefings.

Watch the video below from Fox News.