Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Donald Trump's Former Stenographer Just Explained Why Trump Never Wants His Meetings Recorded, and It's Savage AF

She would know.

Make us preferred on Google

It's no secret that President Donald Trump often pillories truth and contradicts himself, so it's no surprise he doesn't like having his meetings recorded, as previous presidents have.

On Tuesday, a former White House stenographer authored an op-ed in the New York Times detailing why the 45th president is so averse to being on the record.


Beck Dorey-Stein served as a record-keeper in the White House from 2012-2017, serving both President Barack Obama and Trump in the early days of his presidency. In her op-ed, Dorey-Stein offers a compelling but simple reason Trump doesn't like being recorded.

She asks:

"Mr. Trump likes to call anyone who disagrees with him 'fake news.' But if he’s really the victim of so much inaccurate reporting, why is he so averse to having the facts recorded and transcribed?"

Her answer:

"It’s clear that White House stenographers do not serve his administration, but rather his adversary: the truth."

Dorey-Stein also recalled her time working for previous administrations and the respect stenographers were paid for their accurate documentation of what presidents would say.

George W. Bush used to call out, 'I love the stenos!'whenever he saw my boss, Peggy, or her colleagues.

A particularly stunning example of Trump's antipathy toward the truth came last week during his visit to the United Kingdom. In an interview with the British tabloid The Sun, the president trashed Prime Minister Theresa May's approach to implementing Brexit.

Trump claimed May ignored his advice on how to handle negotiations on Britain’s exit from the European Union, which was approved by voter referendum in 2016. The president said May has gone “the opposite way” of what he had suggested and that the results have been “very unfortunate.”

“She wrecked it" was the overall tenor of the interview.

But just hours later, Trump called reports about the interview "fake news" even though every word he spoke was recorded. Even more perplexing was when he said:

“Fortunately, we tend to record stories now...we record when we deal with reporters."

Dorey-Stein recalled that as early as "the Monday after Mr. Trump’s inauguration," Trump made it clear that he "doesn’t like microphones near his face.”

When Trump was interviewed by MSNBC's Lester Holt last year, the same interview in which the president admitted he fired FBI Director James Comey over "the Russia thing," Dorey-Stein was told by a colleague that she "would not be needed often because 'there would be video.'"

Another instance of Trump refusing the presence of stenographer was during an interview Trump held with former Fox anchor Bill O'Reilly.

"I watched with disbelief as the White House communications director Hope Hicks summoned Mr. O’Reilly to the Oval Office so he could speak with Mr. Trump privately," Dorey-Stein recounted.

She added that during her time working for Obama, stenographers were encouraged to record interactions between journalists and the president "just in case the reporter came out with an inaccurate quotation."

Perhaps Trump's desire to avoided being recorded is the reason he insisted on meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un in private during their summit in Singapore last month––and why the president held a closed-door meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki in which only translators were permitted to accompany both leaders.

In a follow-up interview with CNN, Dorey-Stein said she lost pride for her job while working for Trump.

"I quit because I couldn't be proud of where I worked anymore," she told Carol Costello. "I felt like President Trump was lying to the American people ... he wasn't even going the extra mile to have the stenographers in the room."

Indeed, Trump's habitual lying is well-documented. CNN reported in May that Trump has lied more than 3,000 times since taking office.

"That means that, on average, Trump says 6.5 things that aren't true a day. Every. Single. Day."

More from People

Gavin Newsom; Joe Rogan
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images; Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Gavin Newsom Just Epically Dragged Joe Rogan's Disbelief Over Trump's Corruption With Brilliant 'Simpsons' Meme

California Governor Gavin Newsom mocked right-wing conspiracy theorist podcaster Joe Rogan for being shocked over President Donald Trump's announcement of a new Truth Social subscription feature offering users early access to his posts for as much as $100,000 a month.

Because Trump frequently uses the platform to announce major government decisions and other official developments, subscribers could receive potentially market-moving information before the public.

Keep ReadingShow less
Avril Lavigne has a new feline doppelgänger taking the internet by storm.
Noam Galai/Getty Images

A Rescue Cat Is Going Viral For Looking Exactly Like Avril Lavigne—And Fans Are Purring

Sometimes life really is "Complicated"—especially when you’re trying to figure out why Avril Lavigne suddenly has whiskers and four paws.

That’s the question making the rounds after the Surrey Animal Resource Centre (SARC) in British Columbia introduced one of its rescue cats on Facebook, revealing that the feline had been named after the famous singer.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kristy McNichol; Carnie Wilson.
Bobby Bank / Contributor/Getty Images; Jon Kopaloff / Stringer/Getty Images

Carnie Wilson Shares Reclusive '70s Star Kristy McNichol's Sweet Reaction After Their Selfie Went Viral

It's always exciting when we're out and about and spot a celebrity, especially if it's a celebrity whose work we have always admired.

What we might not realize, however, is that even stars get starstruck from time to time.

Keep ReadingShow less
Matt Damon; Tom Holland
Universal Pictures; Sony Pictures/Marvel Studios

London Movie Theater Goes Viral For Promoting 'The Odyssey' And 'Spider-Man' Showings In Hilariously Adorable Way

There's nothing like spending a hot summer day in a movie theater watching a blockbuster, and this summer has no shortage of them.

Two films in particularly, Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey and the latest Marvel installment, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, have taken theaters by storm.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Joey Jones
Fox News

Fox News Host Slammed After Criticizing 'Weak' Sailors Complaining About Deteriorating Conditions Aboard USS Lincoln

Fox News host Joey Jones was criticized for his complaints about the "weak" U.S. Navy sailors who have complained about the conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been deployed in the Middle East since November of 2025.

Jones is a Marine veteran who spent eight years in the military and served in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He was seriously wounded by an IED in Afghanistan in 2010, sustaining severe injuries to his arms and wrists and losing both legs above the knee.

Keep ReadingShow less