A CNN correspondent’s live report from the White House turned chaotic on Wednesday when a worker began blowing leaves directly behind her.
Senior White House Correspondent Kristen Holmes was midway through an update on newly announced pharmaceutical deals when the whirring of a leaf blower drowned out her voice during a segment that was first reported by DailyMail.com.
“I apologize, obviously I’m sure you can hear that since it’s deafening to me,” Holmes told anchor Erica Hill during the segment.
“Someone is doing yard work in the White House directly behind me and they chose this moment, right as I was going to talk to you. So, hopefully you’ll be able to hear me without me shouting.”
Holmes pressed on for more than two minutes over the din before the sound subsided.
The White House lawn is maintained by a year-round team of government gardeners responsible for the South Lawn, the Rose Garden and surrounding grounds.
When asked about the disruption, a White House spokesman denied it was deliberate.
“Federal operations staff, who are going without pay thanks to the Democrat shutdown, work hard to keep the People’s House safe and beautiful for the American people – not the fake news!” White House spokesman Davis Ingle told The Post.
At least one viewer noted the spectacle online.
“Just so happened to stop channel surfing when I hit CNN and the White House lawn care service is loudly leaf blowing directly behind the CNN correspondent while she is trying to do a report,” one user wrote on X, adding a crying-laughing emoji.
The White House grounds crew continued maintenance through the afternoon, according to on-site reporters.
Also Wednesday, the network opted not to air the president’s remarks on the economy live, drawing the White House’s ire.
“President Trump is giving a major economic speech and CNN is not covering it live,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X.
“They don’t want their audience to hear President Trump’s pro-growth, America First economic vision!”
CNN aired regular programming during the speech and posted excerpts later on its website. The network did not immediately comment on Leavitt’s post.
The rebuke marked the latest skirmish in a long-running feud between Trump and CNN, whose correspondents have often clashed with him and his aides dating back to his first term.
In November 2018, Trump’s White House barred CNN’s Jim Acosta from news conferences after a tense exchange with the president.
The administration claimed Acosta placed his hands on a staffer, a charge both he and the network denied.
Throughout his presidency, Trump repeatedly derided CNN as “fake news” and labeled it “the enemy of the people.”
He also frequently sparred with reporters including Acosta, who is no longer with the network, and Kaitlan Collins, at times refusing to take their questions.
The Post has sought comment from CNN.
