Karoline Leavitt, the youngest White House press secretary, makes her debut in the briefing room

WASHINGTON: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made her debut in the briefing room on Tuesday and promised to speak frequently with the news media and open up the briefing room to podcasters and social media influencers, US media reported.

In her first briefing as the public face of President Donald Trump’s second administration, Leavitt spent about 47 minutes answering questions from the White House press corps on the impact of a White House freeze on federal grants and loans and on the early days of the administration’s efforts to deport migrants living in the U.S. illegally.

While Trump often speaks for himself, Leavitt has the responsibility of translating what his remarks could mean for his policies and politics. “I can assure you that you’ll be hearing from both him and me as much as possible,” Leavitt said.

At age 27, the New Hampshire native is the youngest person ever to be named White House press secretary. She’s the sixth working mother in a row to hold the post. Leavitt attended Saint Anselm College, a liberal arts school in Manchester, New Hampshire, on an athletic scholarship. She played on the softball team and graduated in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in politics and communication, the first in her immediate family to earn a college degree.