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Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham fears violence in the U.S. should Donald Trump regain the presidency in 2024 as he would be unfettered by the need to stand for re-election.
Grisham, who quit her post in the aftermath of the January 6 insurrection carried out by the former president's supporters, told ABC News she was worried what would happen to the country if her former boss ran for office again.
"I am terrified of him running for president in 2024," she told Nightline co-anchor Juju Chang in promoting her memoir about her time in Trump's inner circle.
"I don't think he is fit for the job," she added, "I think he would foment more violence. He won't have consequences. He won't need to be reelected again."
Grisham said the priority for Trump and his family in another tilt at the Oval Office would be to "line their pockets" and that while "I believe that he wanted to help the country in the beginning, I believe he wants to help himself now."
Grisham's book I'll Take Your Questions Now is out this week and describes a chaotic White House where "casual dishonesty" was standard.
It accuses Trump of wrongdoings ranging from downplaying the coronavirus pandemic, to making sexually suggestive comments to a young press aide.
Grisham justified her not ever holding a televised briefing, telling ABC that this was because the president did not want her to.
"I was glad that that was something he didn't want from me, because I didn't want to have to go out there and say something dishonest," she said.
Grisham has faced criticism over why she has chosen now to dish dirt on the administration she had served for four years. Former Trump White House director of communications Alyssa Farah accused her of trying to "cash in" with the book and doubted that Trump would be averse to televised briefings.
"That would surprise me," Farah told The View, "when I worked for him, it was, 'Go get out on TV... go give a briefing.' She said that Grisham "could have done backgrounders in her office," adding that "it seemed like she was largely MIA on the job."
The memoir has sparked a strongly-worded statement from both the office of the former first lady Melania Trump, for whom Grisham had served as chief of staff and the former president himself. Donald Trump said that Grisham "didn't have what it takes" and that "like everyone else, she gets paid by a radical left-leaning publisher to say bad and untrue things." Newsweek has contacted the Trumps for comment.
Meanwhile, Grisham faces a defamation lawsuit from former Trump aide and ex-boyfriend Max Miller over accusations that he abused her during their relationship. Grisham made the claims in a Washington Post op-ed, published Tuesday, and did not name Miller.
About the writer
Brendan Cole is a Newsweek Senior News Reporter based in London, UK. His focus is Russia and Ukraine, in particular ... Read more