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DonViejo

(60,536 posts)
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:09 PM Feb 2017

Sean Spicer Reportedly Forced Staffers to Submit to Phone Checks to Snuff Out Leaks

Source: Mediaite



According to a report by Politico today, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer is looking to snuff out leaks coming from the White House to the press by having staffers submit to security checks.

-snip-

Last week, after Spicer became aware that information had leaked out of a planning meeting with about a dozen of his communications staffers, he reconvened the group in his office to express his frustration over the number of private conversations and meetings that were showing up in unflattering news stories, according to sources in the room.

Upon entering Spicer’s second floor office, staffers were told to dump their phones on a table for a “phone check,” to prove they had nothing to hide.


Per the report, Spicer consulted with White House counsel Don McGahn before confronting the staffers. At the meeting, he told them that using protected messaging apps was a violation. He also warned all those attending the meeting of “more problems” if news of this leaked out to the media. Which, of course, it did.

###

Read more: http://www.mediaite.com/online/sean-spicer-reportedly-forced-staffers-to-submit-to-phone-checks-to-snuff-out-leaks/
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Sean Spicer Reportedly Forced Staffers to Submit to Phone Checks to Snuff Out Leaks (Original Post) DonViejo Feb 2017 OP
How stupid can he get? NastyRiffraff Feb 2017 #1
He needs to bring Henry Kissinger in to advise him. - nt KingCharlemagne Feb 2017 #9
Now where would somebody ever find a cell phone in the Washington D.C. area? Botany Feb 2017 #13
Someone needs to tell Angry Spice that land lines are still a thing. nt SunSeeker Feb 2017 #23
And, it would not be on his or her body. Could be hidden NCjack Feb 2017 #34
not to mention when you go home you can call a reporter there wordpix Feb 2017 #64
Here is the best bit... pkdu Feb 2017 #2
This White House is the gang that can't shoot straight. nt msanthrope Feb 2017 #8
It would be laughable lillypaddle Feb 2017 #35
Not only that- but they are not taking notes in meetings and using private emails and phones.... bettyellen Feb 2017 #30
And without this, Delphinus Feb 2017 #51
No accountability- anyone can say anything and people won't know what to believe- bettyellen Feb 2017 #61
But Hillary's emails!!!!!!!!!! yardwork Feb 2017 #73
drumpf is teaching Spicer well. Loyalty oaths and cell phone investigations. democratisphere Feb 2017 #3
Bannon wants a "paperless" White House. Can't prosecute without a trail, can you? Hekate Feb 2017 #36
Keeps those leaks flowing........... democratisphere Feb 2017 #46
Calling Melissa Spicer to lay down the law to those leakers wordpix Feb 2017 #65
Spicer, apparently, has never watched The Wire. nt msanthrope Feb 2017 #4
"Omar comin'!" True Dough Feb 2017 #11
I heard that Spicer was sniffing staffers for leaks too, but with a slightly different emphasis. nt neeksgeek Feb 2017 #5
Use the Navajo Language! Chasstev365 Feb 2017 #6
This is so Caine Mutiny. - nt KingCharlemagne Feb 2017 #7
Right on roscoeroscoe Feb 2017 #39
+1 narnian60 Feb 2017 #47
Bogart knocked that out...."strawberries" Stuart G Feb 2017 #49
Somewhere in Washington DC...at a restraurant..or..airport ..or somewhere.....there Stuart G Feb 2017 #50
And then there's the US mail, the local watering hole, the preferred pizza joint and the lunatica Feb 2017 #54
Wait amoment????? Did you say....US Mail????? come on..that cannot be. Stuart G Feb 2017 #55
I know! Mind boggling isn't it?! lunatica Feb 2017 #56
There's also the old 'share an email account' ... mr_lebowski Feb 2017 #72
Or an old fashioned hand written note wrapped in a newspaper left on a bench lunatica Feb 2017 #77
President Queeg WheelWalker Feb 2017 #52
heeheehee luvMIdog Feb 2017 #10
now Trumpists can't trust staff or maybe even wordpix Feb 2017 #66
Got to love Spicer's Wellstone ruled Feb 2017 #12
Corporate mentality loves this bullshit. But they didn't get the memo that it doesn't work for shit AgadorSparticus Feb 2017 #74
Funny how that works. Wellstone ruled Feb 2017 #75
Oh God... janx Feb 2017 #14
Somebody ought to write a comedy series about this mis-administration NastyRiffraff Feb 2017 #19
Somebody will, no doubt. n/t janx Feb 2017 #32
It lasted until 9/11 SCVDem Feb 2017 #37
No office comedy ever made has anything on this bunch. Dave Starsky Feb 2017 #40
Americans are embarrassed. lagomorph777 Feb 2017 #83
"warnings about leaks have promptly leaked" - now that's real funny! wordpix Feb 2017 #67
So is this Spicer's idea or did it come from above? badhair77 Feb 2017 #15
FIND NOW, janx Feb 2017 #31
Ahhhh, for the old days when employees like Fawn Hall had japple Feb 2017 #16
It must be embarrassing to have internal private communication leaked to the press. Qutzupalotl Feb 2017 #17
SNL n/t Jeroen Feb 2017 #18
Putin Scarsdale Feb 2017 #43
So "1984"! yallerdawg Feb 2017 #20
The administration itself uses protected messaging apps. SunSeeker Feb 2017 #21
yes they are. it was in an article or two not long ago about sending emails that are KewlKat Feb 2017 #38
Encryption is not for "Little People" ThoughtCriminal Feb 2017 #63
Stupidity and hilarity...Spicey JenniferJuniper Feb 2017 #22
smart leakers barbtries Feb 2017 #24
Just handing Melissa McCarthy and SNL material on a silver platter. n/t Yavin4 Feb 2017 #25
That was my thought as well. janx Feb 2017 #27
Did he check Trump's and Bannon's phones? n/t dgibby Feb 2017 #26
Did he catch anyone? Kablooie Feb 2017 #28
That's the real question and story. harun Feb 2017 #81
Phone checks? What an idiot. He needs anal probes!! dalton99a Feb 2017 #29
I'm pretty sure this idiotic move is a directive from his higher ups. smirkymonkey Feb 2017 #33
Pres. Bannon prolly altho Doncon wordpix Feb 2017 #68
devices please... bora13 Feb 2017 #41
Looking forward to great editorial cartoons about this. JudyM Feb 2017 #42
CIA probably bugging all these creeps and doing the leaks. nt Lucky Luciano Feb 2017 #44
This is like the biggest Keystone Kops-like operation that I've ever seen in a White House MrScorpio Feb 2017 #45
Now...I am a fan of Loony Tunes...and Stuart G Feb 2017 #57
3 stooges, Bannon, Rancid and Dump wordpix Feb 2017 #69
2 of the three could be called..Beavis and Butt-Head Stuart G Feb 2017 #70
Obviously it never occurred to Spicer that people might have more than 1 phone! vlyons Feb 2017 #48
is it just a coincedence that Sean Spicer's initals are SS mdbl Feb 2017 #53
They may want to look out for the flies on the wall BumRushDaShow Feb 2017 #58
I'm sure Dumpf did phone checks on the Russian hookers as well Dopers_Greed Feb 2017 #59
THAT'S the way to lead!! Rex Feb 2017 #60
This is great news. Just more of the demoralization that resulted in leaks in the first place. Nitram Feb 2017 #62
Deep Throat and Bob Woodward did it in a parking garage Tanuki Feb 2017 #71
Which leaks? RandySF Feb 2017 #76
Why dosen't SS waterboard the ingrates yortsed snacilbuper Feb 2017 #78
That's gonna go over well. Plus, you know they've got a burner. kysrsoze Feb 2017 #79
Two Words Mr. Spicer: Burner phone. yellowcanine Feb 2017 #80
He's just pissing them off more! lagomorph777 Feb 2017 #82

NastyRiffraff

(12,448 posts)
1. How stupid can he get?
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:12 PM
Feb 2017

Does he really think that a leaker would use a work phone? Any self-respecting leaker would use an alternate phone, preferably one of those pay as you go things. If they don't,they're too stupid to live.

Splicer (sic) is getting desperate.

Botany

(70,281 posts)
13. Now where would somebody ever find a cell phone in the Washington D.C. area?
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:21 PM
Feb 2017

It is not like you can just walk into a store and buy a phone and prepaid
phone plan in about 1,000 locations.

BTW Spicer is selling the spin ..... the problem is the leaks and leakers
not that Trump and Putin worked to rig the election.

wordpix

(18,652 posts)
64. not to mention when you go home you can call a reporter there
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 08:54 PM
Feb 2017

or send an email from home address: "I need to tell you something, let's meet for lunch."

pkdu

(3,977 posts)
2. Here is the best bit...
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:15 PM
Feb 2017
"There, he explicitly warned staffers that using texting apps like Confide -- an encrypted and screenshot-protected messaging app that automatically deletes texts after they are sent -- and Signal, another encrypted messaging system, was a violation of the Federal Records Act, according to multiple sources in the room."


#45 does this with tweets every other day ( deletes them)
 

bettyellen

(47,209 posts)
30. Not only that- but they are not taking notes in meetings and using private emails and phones....
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 03:00 PM
Feb 2017

Not keeping any recordings or records of anything. Scary shit, but the leakers are probably keeping better records than anyone in a professional capacity to do so.

 

bettyellen

(47,209 posts)
61. No accountability- anyone can say anything and people won't know what to believe-
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 06:40 PM
Feb 2017

It's a game they are playing with us at every possible level. Down to how they spread lies and then ding the media for reporting them. Ugh.

democratisphere

(17,235 posts)
3. drumpf is teaching Spicer well. Loyalty oaths and cell phone investigations.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:15 PM
Feb 2017

Who the hell wants to work in this WH environment.

Stuart G

(38,359 posts)
49. Bogart knocked that out...."strawberries"
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 04:49 PM
Feb 2017

...an incredible and wonderful comparison...to this "leak shit".......oh...and about the "leak shit"...we (the world) did not find out about..Deep Throat..till after Nixon had fallen and resigned...
perhaps there is a team of ...leak shitters ...in Trump's group... Will they catch them all?...
what will be the punishment?...Will one get away?
when will we hear the end of "leak shit".............well stay tuned to...........

tomorrow's next episode ....."leak shit"...............
.............................same time, same station.

Stuart G

(38,359 posts)
50. Somewhere in Washington DC...at a restraurant..or..airport ..or somewhere.....there
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 04:57 PM
Feb 2017

could be............are you ready????....1,2,3..............PAY PHONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

lunatica

(53,410 posts)
54. And then there's the US mail, the local watering hole, the preferred pizza joint and the
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 05:05 PM
Feb 2017

spouses calling spouses group. Someone should tell them to watch Casino with DeNiro to know how to communicate under the radar. There are probably so many ways it would surprise everyone.

Stuart G

(38,359 posts)
55. Wait amoment????? Did you say....US Mail????? come on..that cannot be.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 05:09 PM
Feb 2017

You mean someone could ....now I am holding this back....could......someone.......

...............write a letter to inform someone of something?

Nawwwwwwwwwwwwwww.....that is impossible.........letters are only on computers......

thank you ...

 

mr_lebowski

(33,643 posts)
72. There's also the old 'share an email account' ...
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 10:32 PM
Feb 2017

Then create a 'draft' that you don't actually 'send' ... then give someone else the password, where they can then view the 'draft' and delete ... unless you have access to the server itself (should require a subpoena), or do IP packet sniffing (to capture the transfer over the internet when it's either saved, or viewed) which is resource intensive esp. if you don't who is doing it, and where they're doing it from ... So, while not foolproof, it avoids having a formal 'email' ... passing through normal 'email delivery' channels, which are easier to monitor ...

lunatica

(53,410 posts)
77. Or an old fashioned hand written note wrapped in a newspaper left on a bench
Mon Feb 27, 2017, 01:02 AM
Feb 2017

There aren't fingers and toes enough to count the ways.

 

Wellstone ruled

(34,661 posts)
12. Got to love Spicer's
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:21 PM
Feb 2017

management style. Yup,the beatings will continue until your attitude improves. Yup,way to go Buddy.

AgadorSparticus

(7,963 posts)
74. Corporate mentality loves this bullshit. But they didn't get the memo that it doesn't work for shit
Mon Feb 27, 2017, 12:21 AM
Feb 2017

This is why they will never get anywhere worth the war in ISIS. They think they can just strongarm their way through everything. Smdh..

janx

(24,128 posts)
14. Oh God...
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:22 PM
Feb 2017

"Spicer also warned the group of more problems if news of the phone checks and the meeting about leaks was leaked to the media. It's not the first time that warnings about leaks have promptly leaked. The State Department's legal office issued a four-page memo warning of the dangers of leaks -- that memo was immediately posted by the Washington Post."




Edited to add--This is an excerpt from the original article at Politico.

NastyRiffraff

(12,448 posts)
19. Somebody ought to write a comedy series about this mis-administration
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:25 PM
Feb 2017

You just can't make this shit up. VEEP has nothing on this bunch.

Dave Starsky

(5,914 posts)
40. No office comedy ever made has anything on this bunch.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 03:55 PM
Feb 2017

This is the most incompetent gang of belligerent assholes I've ever seen working in a so-called "professional" environment. They are an absolute embarrassment before the world.

badhair77

(4,191 posts)
15. So is this Spicer's idea or did it come from above?
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:23 PM
Feb 2017

I'm having McCarthy flashbacks. This is getting scarier with each day.

japple

(9,772 posts)
16. Ahhhh, for the old days when employees like Fawn Hall had
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:23 PM
Feb 2017

to really use their imagination! Stuffed documents into her pantyhose and sneaked them out!

Qutzupalotl

(14,230 posts)
17. It must be embarrassing to have internal private communication leaked to the press.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:24 PM
Feb 2017

That must really bother them.

Scarsdale

(9,426 posts)
43. Putin
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 04:04 PM
Feb 2017

Woudn't it be funny if it turned out that Vlad is the leajker? I can imagine him and his "cohorts" listening into the WH conversations, and laughing their asses off!! Bannon might have planted the bug for them.

yallerdawg

(16,104 posts)
20. So "1984"!
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:26 PM
Feb 2017

Planning meeting with White House communication staffers.

"When I go out and lie, you must keep secret! You work for me, not the American people!"

SunSeeker

(51,367 posts)
21. The administration itself uses protected messaging apps.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:26 PM
Feb 2017

Which of course is in direct violation of federal record keeping requirements and an illegal attemp to avoid FOIA disclosures.

KewlKat

(5,624 posts)
38. yes they are. it was in an article or two not long ago about sending emails that are
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 03:51 PM
Feb 2017

encrypted, messages that self delete, they're not recording phone conversations with pootie.....etc.....they are also using the RNC server for emails and gee, I'm sure there is more....brain now overloaded. someone else fill in the rest.

barbtries

(28,702 posts)
24. smart leakers
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:34 PM
Feb 2017

have burn phones they keep at home. soon thugs will be knocking at their doors i suppose. i fantasize that some of them realize that they are in the front line to keep democracy in the USA alive.

janx

(24,128 posts)
27. That was my thought as well.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 02:48 PM
Feb 2017

I wonder how long it will take for SNL to put this skit together...?

 

smirkymonkey

(63,221 posts)
33. I'm pretty sure this idiotic move is a directive from his higher ups.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 03:33 PM
Feb 2017

Who are completely clueless as to how leaks are propagated.

bora13

(860 posts)
41. devices please...
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 03:56 PM
Feb 2017

if you don't have anything to hide, comrade, then you will have nothing to worry about. DOHHH!

actually, if I were a dedicated American who was going to be subjected to device please...,
I would buy a burner phone and post, tweet and send all kinds of sweet nothings about t-rump all day long.

nothing to see here spicey. move along.

MrScorpio

(73,626 posts)
45. This is like the biggest Keystone Kops-like operation that I've ever seen in a White House
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 04:36 PM
Feb 2017

These guys are pure Loony Tunes.

Stuart G

(38,359 posts)
57. Now...I am a fan of Loony Tunes...and
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 05:18 PM
Feb 2017

as a member of the .."Loony Tune Fan Society"..LTFS... the society knows that the Loony Tunes are far more saner the the Dump Gang ever could conceive of.....unfortunately...there is one possible exception...

we try to keep this a secret, but there is a certain coyote ..that is indeed obsessed ..and sadly he may be..and I have a hard time saying this.................................totally loony!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.............and

as loony as anyone in the Dump Gang......perhaps that gang should contact ACME to see if they can find some useful tools to catch the leaker.

Stuart G

(38,359 posts)
70. 2 of the three could be called..Beavis and Butt-Head
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 09:29 PM
Feb 2017

and a third could be called, "The brilliant Homer Simpson"

 

Rex

(65,616 posts)
60. THAT'S the way to lead!!
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 05:58 PM
Feb 2017

NOT! Morale? Probably hovering around zero and because of this stunt - another leaker emerges!

Nitram

(22,663 posts)
62. This is great news. Just more of the demoralization that resulted in leaks in the first place.
Sun Feb 26, 2017, 07:03 PM
Feb 2017

The Keystone Cops met the Three Stooges.

RandySF

(57,592 posts)
76. Which leaks?
Mon Feb 27, 2017, 12:47 AM
Feb 2017

The leaks from the White House, or the leaks those Russian hookers took on Trump's bed?

yellowcanine

(35,692 posts)
80. Two Words Mr. Spicer: Burner phone.
Mon Feb 27, 2017, 10:09 AM
Feb 2017

Keep the phone turned off while in the WH and use it only when away from the WH. Better yet, don't even take the phone into the WH, just in case Spiceman or someone else decides to go Gestapo on you. Leave it in your car or at home. Nothing you can do about it, Spiceman. Welcome to Democracy.

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