White House names new press secretary

WASHINGTON—Stephanie Grisham, the spokeswoman for Melania Trump, will become the new White House press secretary at the beginning of July, the first lady announced Tuesday. Grisham will succeed Sarah Sanders, who announced her decision to step down earlier this month amid rumors she was considering following in the footsteps of her father, Mike Huckabee, and running for governor of Arkansas. “I’m sad to leave … but so happy to leave our team in such great hands,” Sanders tweeted after the appointment was announced. “Stephanie will do a phenomenal job. Proud to have another mom and a great friend in this role.”

Grisham is from Arizona and the single mother of one adult and one school-age child, KASZ-TV in Phoenix reported. She will also take over the position of communications director, a spot that has been vacant for several months. That position was held by Sean Spicer, Mike Dubke, Anthony Scaramucci, Hope Hicks, and most recently Bill Shine before his resignation in March.

Grisham started working with President Donald Trump near the beginning of his presidential campaign in 2015. She helped handle media members who followed Trump’s campaign and became a deputy press secretary after his election. In March 2017, the first lady chose Grisham as her spokeswoman and the two became close confidantes. Grisham will continue to serve Melania Trump in her new capacity.