Sean Spicer, in his first interview after the Emmys, said he didn't 'knowingly' lie as press secretary
In an interview with Paula Faris of "Good Morning America," Spicer conceded that he had "made mistakes" during his time as press secretary, but did not believe he had deliberately been dishonest.
"I don't think so," he said after Faris asked whether he had ever lied to the American people. When she pressed him on whether he could unequivocally say he had not lied, Spicer added that, "I have not knowingly done anything to do that, no."
Spicer said he had attempted to take responsibility for his mistakes "very publicly."
"In some cases there were things that I did that until someone brought it up, I said, 'Gosh I didn't realize that was a mistake. I'm sorry about that,'" he said. "But to watch some of the personal attacks - questioning my integrity, questioning what my intentions were - I think that was really over the top."
The interview was Spicer's first since his controversial cameo at the Emmy awards, in which he appeared during host Stephen Colbert's monologue with a mock podium to proclaim, "This is the largest audience to witness an Emmys, period."
The appearance echoed the false claims Spicer made at his infamous press briefing in January, in which he assailed the media and insisted that Trump's inauguration drew the "largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in-person and around the globe."
Spicer's remark was disproven by photographic evidence that showed a much smaller audience on the National Mall than the crowd at President Barack Obama's first inauguration in 2009.
Spicer addressed the inauguration incident on "Good Morning America," telling Faris that he had some regrets about how he handled it.
"I think it might have been better to be a lot more specific with what we were talking about in terms of the universe, and not focus so much on photographic evidence, etc.," Spicer said. "So, yes, from that standpoint, I think I probably could have had more facts at hand and been more articulate at describing the entirety of what that day was about."
Watch a clip of the interview below:
EXCLUSIVE: Sean Spicer says he did not "knowingly" lie in first TV interview since #Emmys appearance: https://t.co/jGJ0mfxdGD - @paulafaris pic.twitter.com/r8gyDlmAwF
- Good Morning America (@GMA) September 21, 2017
- I quit McKinsey after 1.5 years. I was making over $200k but my mental health was shattered.
- Some Tesla factory workers realized they were laid off when security scanned their badges and sent them back on shuttles, sources say
- I tutor the children of some of Dubai's richest people. One of them paid me $3,000 to do his homework.
- Why are so many elite coaches moving to Western countries?
- Global GDP to face a 19% decline by 2050 due to climate change, study projects
- 5 things to keep in mind before taking a personal loan
- Markets face heavy fluctuations; settle lower taking downtrend to 4th day
- Move over Bollywood, audio shows are starting to enter the coveted ‘100 Crores Club’