Hillary Clinton’s sudden exit from the 9/11 memorial service left her pool reporters in the dark about what happened to her — and outraged she was able to ditch them.
The Washington Post’s Anne Gearan, chair of the press pool covering Clinton’s campaign, said the incident was “not acceptable” and reporters “should have gone with [Clinton] and been kept better informed” following her collapse.
Neither Clinton nor Donald Trump have yet allowed themselves to be covered by a full-access “protective pool,” whereby a group of journalists or a designated representative would shadow each candidate and travel in their motorcades.
Clinton’s campaign didn’t even confirm her departure at around 10 a.m. until about an hour later, issuing a statement saying she “felt overheated” and went to daughter Chelsea’s apartment near Madison Square Park.
Robert Gibbs, President Obama’s first White House press secretary, said it was time for Clinton and Trump to give reporters more access.
“There comes a point for each nominee when it must be part of daily life,” he tweeted.
Credit: Zdenek Gazda