In her debut briefing as White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt already had her hands full. President Trump had signed an executive order pausing all federal funding, which was set to take effect that afternoon and was already causing panic.
Every Medicaid reimbursement portal in the country had stopped working. Organizations like Meals on Wheels, which deliver food to the elderly and people with disabilities, and Head Start, which assists low-income families with childcare, were worried about cuts to their programs. Democrats were warning that the EO’s language was so broad it could affect funding for local law enforcement, disaster aid, rural hospitals, and more.
“Why impose this pause with so little notice?” a reporter asked Leavitt. “Why not give organizations more time to plan for the fact that they are about to lose, in some cases, really crucial federal funding—”
“There was notice. It was the executive order that the president signed,” she replied, before going on to spread a bizarre conspiracy theory. “DOGE and OMB also found that there was about to be 50 million taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza,” she said. “That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money.”
No one had any idea what she was talking about—because she had made it all up.
