Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt Briefs Members of the Media, Apr. 22, 2025

Good afternoon everybody. Good to see you. All the thoughts and prayers of the entire White House remain with all of the Catholics around the world who are mourning the death of Pope Francis. Pope Francis touched millions of lives and dedicated his life to serving the Catholic Church. As a mark of respect for his memory, President Trump ordered flags be flown at half staff and he will be traveling to attend his funeral in Rome. The President will depart from Washington on Friday morning and return to the United States on Saturday evening following the funeral service. I can also confirm the dates of the President's trip to the Middle East. He will travel to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from May 13th until May 16th. And on Thursday of this week, President Trump will welcome Norwegian Prime Minister at the White House for a working visit. The two leaders will discuss trade and regional security. This will be the 13th head of state visit of President Trump's term. Already at the Border, President Trump continues to deliver on his promise to make America safe again. The Wall Street Journal captured the Trump effect in a recent article Border Crossings Grind to a Halt as Trump's Tough policies take hold U.S. customs and Border Protection recorded its lowest Southwest border crossings in history in March and and we're seeing the same successes at our northern border. Here's how the New York Post put it. Northern border sector, previously overrun by illegal migrants, sees dramatic drop in crossings. We haven't seen anyone since November, end quote. According to U.S. customs and Border Protection, just 54 illegal aliens were apprehended in the Swanton sector of our northern border, which stretches more than 300 miles in March. This is a drastic 95% drop from the more than 1,000 border crossings that were caught in March 2024. This is a main hotspot area that recorded more than 80% of all apprehensions along the northern border during the 2024 fiscal year. And new reporting from the Washington Times fully highlights the difference in Joe Biden's disgraceful approach to the border compared to President Trump's. Under Trump, border catch and Release has dropped 99.99% from worst Biden month. You can't get much better than that. This statistic in particular is astounding. Border Patrol agents caught and immediately released 189,604 illegal aliens into the United States in December 2023, at the height of the Biden border crisis. But under President Trump, Border Patrol agents caught and released only 20 illegal aliens into the US in the month of February. Thanks to President Trump, operational control of the border is becoming a reality, and the administration's historic enforcement measures are yielding huge results. Illegal aliens are finally getting the blunt. If you cross the border illegally, you will be swiftly deported and never return to the United States of America. Efforts to arrest the criminal illegal alien invaders are continuing to ramp up. ICE Chicago arrested a Mexican national convicted of predatory sexual assault of a child in Cook County, Illinois this week. ICE Denver arrested a Mexican national convicted of sexual assault of a child in Houston County, Texas. ICE Miami arrested a Nicaraguan convicted of aggravated battery in Hillsborough County, Florida. ICE Houston arrested a Salvadorian national convicted of attempted sexual assault of a child and escape in Dallas County, Texas. And ICE Chicago arrested a Mexican national convicted of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor in Illinois. Despite the Democrats insane objections, President Trump will continue to embolden law enforcement officers to arrest dangerous legal alien criminals and keep our communities safe. And also thanks to President Trump's America first economic approach, investments continue to pour into our country. Swiss pharmaceuticals company announced they will be investing $50 billion in the United States over the next five years, creating 12,000 new quality jobs. Regenera and Pharmaceuticals also agreed to pay Fujifilm Technology technologies more than? 3 billion over the next decade to help manufacture its medicines in the United States. It's a top priority for President Trump to ensure we are producing critical medicines and pharmaceutical drugs right here in America. And that is exactly what we continue to see happen every day. In other news, the Trump administration has announced we will put an end to Joe Biden's illegal student loan bailout attempts. No student loan has been referred to collection since March of 2020. That comes to an end on May 5th. The Department of Education will resume involuntary collections for borrowers with defaulted federal student loans. The student loan portfolio controlled by the federal government is nearly $1.6 trillion, but fewer than 4 out of 10 borrowers are in repayment. This is unsustainable, unfair, and a huge liability for American taxpayers. Debt cannot be wiped away. It just ends up getting transferred to others. So why should Americans who didn't go to college or went to college and responsibly paid back their loans pay for the student loans of other Americans? The Trump administration will never force taxpayers to pay student loan debts that don't belong to them. Student loan borrowers need clarity and we're finally giving it to them. Borrowers will now be clearly expected to repay their loans, and those who default on their loan obligations will face involuntary collections. The government can and will collect defaulted federal student loan debt by withholding money from borrowers, tax refunds, federal pensions, and even their wages. America is $36 trillion in debt. We must get our fiscal house in order and restore common sense to our country. If you take out a loan, you have to pay it back. It's very simple. President Trump will not kick the can down the road anymore. Before we open it up to questions today, I want to commend our pool photographer who is in the room with us today. ABC News photojournalist Melissa Young is retiring after 44 incredible years on the job covering here at the White House. Melissa, congratulations. You have the largest round of applause I've ever heard in this room. So there's something we can all agree on. And you've had an incredible career here covering the White House. So congratulations to you and we hope you enjoy retirement. I'm sure you will, and everybody else in the room will be very jealous of you as you're enjoying your rest. All right. Let's get to it. We have an individual in our new media seat today. His name is Tim Poole. He's a political commentator and a media entrepreneur with millions of followers, a very big platform, and currently hosts Tim Cast irl, a daily news and discussions show, and the Culture War, a weekly podcast exploring cultural and political issues. His programs feature in depth conversations on topics such as free speech, censorship, identity politics and societal change, often engaging with a diverse range of guests. He's in Washington today because we are also hosting a local media row across the street in the Eisenhower Building, which is a testament to our commitment to bring new voices into the White House to cover the president and this administration. So, Tim, why don't you kick us off today?

Yes, many of these organizations that are represented in this room have marked in lockstep on false narratives such as the Verifying People Hoax, the Covington Smear, and now what's being called the Maryland man hoax, where an MS.13 gang member adjudicated by two different judges, I believe is just simply being referred to as a Maryland man over and over again. Now, in an effort from the White House to expand access to new companies, you've created this new media seat. So I'm wondering if you can comment on following this expansion, you've had numerous outlets disparage the companies that you've had sit here as well as the reporters. I'm wondering if you could comment on that unprofessional behavior as well as elaborate if there's any plans to expand access to new companies.

Ms. Sure. Well, we certainly welcome diverse viewpoints in this room, which is one of the reasons we have you in here. And there's many new faces in this room in comparison to the previous administrations. We want to welcome all viewpoints into this room. We welcome unbiased journalists who really care about the truth and the facts and the accuracy. And you rightfully pointed out the Maryland man story, which I from this podium when the Atlantic published it. On that very first day, I came to this podium and said, this is wrong. The press in this room have this story wrong. And we have seen more and more evidence come to the table that we have had all along. We were always right. The president was always on the right side of this issue to deport this illegal criminal from our community. And it is despicable to see the media continue to refer to this individual as someone who is just a peaceful man living his life in Maryland. This was and always has been an illegal criminal, an Ms. 13 gang member and a designated foreign terrorist. And the administration maintains our position to deport these individuals from our community. So thank you for being here, Tim. It's great to see you. Thank you. Dasha, why don't you kick us off? Thank you, Karen. You're welcome. I really appreciate it. I have two questions, one on the Pentagon and another on the economy. You said on Fox News that the entire Pentagon is working against Secretary Hegseth, but the people who were fired were Hegseth's own guys. So how do you square that and what do you say to concerns that that's bad management? Ms. They were Pentagon employees who leaked against their boss to news agencies in this room. And it's been clear since day one from this administration that we are not going to tolerate individuals who leak to the mainstream media, particularly when it comes to sensitive information. And the secretary of defense is doing a tremendous job and he is bringing monumental change to the Pentagon. And there's a lot of people in this city who reject monumental change. And I think, frankly, that's why we've seen a smear campaign against the secretary of Defense since the moment that President Trump announced his nomination before the United States Senate. Let me reiterate, the president stands strongly behind Secretary Hegseth and the change that he is bringing to the Pentagon and the results that he's achieved thus far speak for themselves. Is there an FBI investigation into the leaks? The secretary said that these people would be prosecuted. So is the FBI investigating? Ms. You'd have to ask the FBI, you have to ask the Department of Justice justice on what they plan to do. But certainly we take leaks with the utmost seriously across this administration. You've seen people fired from the Department of Homeland security. The president has made it clear it's an unacceptable behavior on the economy. Caroline, Peter Navarro said that it's perfectly possible to do 90 deals in 90 days. We haven't seen one just yet. How soon might we see a deal and what evidence can you share that progress is being made in these trade negotiations? Sure. Well, I spoke to our entire trade team this morning. There is a lot of progress being made. We now have 18 proposals on paper that have been brought to the trade team. Again, these are proposals on paper that countries have proposed to the Trump administration and to our government. You have Secretary Besant, Secretary Lutnick, Ambassador Greer, NEC Director Hassett and Peter Navarro. The entire trade team meeting with 34 countries this week alone. We are moving at Trump's to ensure these deals are made on behalf of the American worker and the American people. And just yesterday it seemed to get a little bit lost in the news, and I think it's a disservice to the American public that it did. The vice president announced terms of reference for a trade deal with India. That is a big deal. We know when we look at the numbers, the monetary trade barriers and the non monetary trade barriers from India, they have been ripping off the United States and American workers for a very long time. So the fact that the vice president, with Prime Minister Modi on that trip in India, announced these terms of reference, which is essentially a framework to move the ball forward to sign a good trade deal between our two nations, is great progress and it speaks to the work ethic and the real labor that's being put into this effort by the president's trade team. Sure, go ahead. Does the proposals that you talk about.

Is that enough to extend the pauses.

On these reciprocal tariffs, or does the.

President need to see these deals inked.

And signed to offer any sort of additional extension beyond the 90 days? Ms. Well, look, ask me in July when the deadline hits. I know I'll be answering those questions from all of you in this room. There's a lot of time left and the president's trade team is working again at Trump's speed as quickly as they can to ensure that these deals can be made. Are any of those conversations yet with China happening? Ms. I actually do have something to share on that. I asked the president about this before coming out here and he wanted me to share with all of you that we're doing very well in respect to a potential trade deal with China. As I mentioned, there have now been 18 proposals in more than 100 countries around the world who are wanting to make a deal with the United States of America, and the president and the administration are setting the stage for a deal with China. So we feel everyone involved wants to see a trade deal happen and the ball is moving in the right direction. Sure. Setting the stage for a deal with China. What does that mean? Has the president spoken directly with Xi yet? Ms. I don't have anything to read out on a direct talk between the president and President Xi, but we will continue to keep you updated. And Secretary Bessen reportedly today told investors that this trade standoff with China he expects will be de escalating soon because, as he described it, reportedly the situation is unsustainable. Is the president considering taking steps to deescalate the situation with China? Ms. Again, I just read you words directly from the president of the United States. Those are moments ago. That's where his head is at right now. Sure, Caroline.

I have two questions, one on immigration and one on China. First on immigration. Roughly how many illegal immigrants and aliens do we have in our country and how many does the administration plan on deporting?

Sure. Well, you'd have to ask the Department of Homeland Security for a specific number, but we suspect it's definitely in the millions, perhaps upwards of 20 million people that were allowed into the country illegally by the previous administration. And the president and his team are focused on deporting as many as we possibly can, and they are moving as quickly as possible. The president's team has made it clear we need more funding from Congress to do more. We need more ICE agents out on the ground doing this very important work. And we also need rogue district court judges to stop acting as judicial activists trying to block the administration from deporting illegal criminals from our nation's interior. The American public elected the president to do this and he's following through with that promise.

And we have over a quarter million Chinese nationals in our country right now on student visas. Does the administration believe there's any national security concern when it comes to those over a quarter million Chinese nationals in our country?

Ms. Well, as you know, when it comes to foreign visas, the secretary of State remains has the right to revoke visas of those who we feel are acting in an adversial way to our foreign policy interests here in the United States. He has that authority according to the Immigration and Nationality Act. So I would defer you to the State Department for any individual case, but they are looking at individuals who are given the privilege of being on a visa visa in our country, and if they are acting, again, adversal to our foreign policy interests. Their visa can be revoked and they should be aware of that. Caroline sure, go ahead. Yes, I'm calling on you.

Thank you, Caroline.

You're welcome.

Over the last few weeks, several countries have warned their citizens about travel to the US and the Department of Commerce's own stats show that from a lot of countries, the number of visitors is falling. Does the white have any message from for people that might be reconsidering business or tourism travel to the U.S. Ms. Where did you see that report the statistics come from? The Department of Commerce said what?

It's hard to hear you, sorry that.

Visitors from a lot of countries from a lot of countries have fallen in the last three months.

Ms. I'd have to look at that report to comment on the merits of it. I think most people around the world recognize the United States of America is a great place to do business. It's a beautiful place to visit, and they should certainly come here because it's a much safer country than it was four years ago under the previous president. Libby, good to see you. Carolina, A question about this upcoming announcement from HHS to ban food dyes. During the first week of the administration, the FDA announced that it's polling its plan to ban menthol cigarettes. So two questions for you. How do you square a ban on menthol cigarettes being polled and then announcing this ban on food dyes? And then how does the president feel about this upcoming ban that RFK is going to announce? Ms. Sure. Well, look, the secretary of Health and Human Services the president nominated him because he trusts him to make this country healthy again. It's not just a slogan. It really is a movement that has broken ground across the country. There's millions of people who believe in rfk, junior Secretary Kennedy and what he's doing. I don't want to get ahead of HHS with this historic announcement later and the details of it, but obviously the secretary feels that he has reason and evidence to announce the ban on artificial dyes later, and I'll let him speak to that this afternoon.

Phil, the president started the process of reclassifying more than 50,000 federal employees as Schedule F. We've already seen him march through a number of government agencies. I'm curious, should we expect mass firings or is this a case by case approach? A scalpel or a sledgehammer?

Ms. Well, look, as you saw on Friday, the President put out a statement about it. The Office of Personnel Management reclassified workers. They're now called schedule, policy, career. And all the president is trying to do is ensure that federal workers are being held accountable for corrupt behavior. If they are engaging in corruption as a government worker, they should no longer have their job. I think that's pretty common sense. He also believes that bureaucrats should be acting in accordance to the will of the American public, who duly elected this president. Not just this president, but all future presidents. If you work for the government, you should be adhering to the will of the American public and advancing the administration's goals and interests. And if you are not doing that, then you should go find another job who, whose interests you align with. So as for specific firings, I would defer you to the specific agencies, but the president in this move and Office of Personnel Management, it will make it easier to get rid of rogue bureaucrats who are engaging in corruption.

And then another quick question about rule, real quick.

Sure.

A federal court ruled last Thursday that Google's dominance of online advertising and tech markets violated U.S. antitrust laws. I know the president has spoken to a number of folks in big tech and you know, Google CEO was even at his inauguration. I'm curious, what is the President's reaction to that court ruling?

I'll have to ask him. And I'll get back to you, Phil. Thank you, Carol. You're welcome, John.

Thanks a lot. Carolina, some economic questions for you. Kevin Hassett has been a key economic adviser to the President in both of his terms in 2020.

And he still is.

And he still is.

He was just in my office.

Absolutely. In 2022. He said that the independence of the Fed is super important. That's a direct quote. Is that something that the President subscribes to? Does he still believe in the independence of The Federal Reserve?

Ms. Look, I think the President has made his position on the Fed and on Powell quite clear. The president believes that they have been making moves and taking action in the name of politics, rather in the name of what's right for the American economy. The President believes has the right to express his displeasure with the Fed, and he has the right to say he believes interest rates should be lower. He believes Americans should be able to borrow money cheaper than they currently are right now. And I also spoke to Kevin Hassett about the Fed as well, and he has called into question the Fed's independence and whether they are actually doing things, again, out of the best interest of the economy or are they doing it for partisan reasons. The President wants to see interest rates lower. He has made that quite clear.

We've also seen, if I may, I'm sorry, one more, Caroline. Just about. I said Two economic questions about the dollar. We've seen the dollar at multi year lows versus the euro and other currencies around the world. Is it the administration's policy for a strong dollar? How does it view the dollar versus other currencies around the world? Ms.

The President wants to see the dollar remain as the world's reserve currency for our long term fiscal stability and our economic growth. He's been quite clear about that. Sure. And then to the woman behind you who I haven't seen before, welcome. Go ahead, Mary. Earth Day and then the Supreme Court, if that's okay. That's right, it's Earth Day. Yes, Happy Earth Day, everyone. I saw the president truthing about the garbage pile up from China and the Pacific. And then I believe Lee Zeldin is headed to San Diego to investigate the pile of sewage from Mexico. Can you speak to what the White House has been plan for Earth Day and anything in that area? Ms. Sure. I do have points from the EPA. Administrator Zeldin is doing a fantastic job and they are always sharing their accomplishments with the White House, which we very much appreciate. He will be traveling. I believe he's in California today for sewage situation. Here you go. Administrator Zeldin met with his Mexican counterpart to discuss steps Mexico needs to take to ensure the water entering the United States is clean and safe. And he's holding a press conference in San Diego today with elected officials and local stakeholders on the Tijuana river sewage crisis. I would also add from the president himself, he has always maintained he wants America to have the cleanest air and the cleanest water, and we want to do what's right for our environment and for our earth. And a lot of that is making sure that we have clean and sustainable energy. And we know that we produce natural gas cleaner and more efficiently than any country in this world. And the president wants to see that continue. Thank you. And then on the Supreme Court, I know the court is hearing a case dealing with parents who don't want their kids having to read gender ideology books in schools. Can you comment on that case and what the Trump administration hopes to see come from that? Ms. Sure. We hope the Supreme Court will do the right thing. And the president has been very clear. He stands on the side of parental rights and he believes strongly that parents should have a greater say in their children's education and the content, if you will, that children are being exposed to in our public school system. Caroline, thank you. Hi, I'm Carolina Lumeta with World News Group. The administration ended some temporary protections for Afghans, including several hundred Christians who have been punished by the Taliban. Is the president considering any exceptions for Afghans who could face death or torture if they return to their home country? Ms. So let's just be clear about one thing. We didn't end that proactively. It expired, and it's because the previous administration illegally paroled millions of people or hundreds of thousands of people I'm sorry, into the country and then gave them temporary protective status, which, again, is a temporary status. It's not a permanent status in this country. And if there are individuals here who came in through the Biden administration who want to claim asylum, there is a legal process to do that, and those cases will be adjudicated by a judge on a case by case basis. We have a legal immigration process in this country for a reason, and all this administration is trying to do is effectuate that. Reagan thank you. Caroline. I have two questions for you. On immigration March, deportation numbers were down slightly from the same time period last year. SCOTUS recently ordered a pause on deporting Trande Aragua members with the Alien Enemies Act. I'm curious what other tools the administration is looking at to boost those deportation numbers. Sure. Well, we are obviously complying with the court's order. However, it was a temporary pause. Thus, the Supreme Court basically said sit tight and they will follow up with an order. And we're confident that the Supreme Court will rule on the side of law and recognize the president absolutely has the executive authority to deport foreign terrorists from our nation's interior under the Alien Enemies Act. We feel very strongly about that, and we're confident the courts will side with the president and his executive authority. As for deportations, we continue to deport illegal criminals under Title eight, which is an immigration authority given to our Border Patrol agents and the Department of Homeland Security to deport illegal criminals from this country. And the administration continues to do that at record speed as quickly as they can with the resources that they have. The DOJ recently dropped charges against the MS.13 leader caught in Woodbridge, Virginia, with the idea that this will expedite the deportation process. Does the administration plan to drop charges against other criminal illegals to speed along the deportation process? Ms. You'd have to ask the Department of Justice. Obviously, that's within their purview, and I can't speak for them. However, it is our goal to deport as many illegal criminals and aliens from our country as we possibly can as quickly as we can. Jackie thank you, Caroline. We've heard so much about this Saudi trip planning, and the president has mentioned it himself before, but I don't think we've ever heard on the record what he hopes to achieve in Saudi Arabia and what the purpose of the trip is. Ms. Sure. Well, the president looks forward to this. It was supposed to be his first foreign visit, but, of course, now he is going to Rome this weekend to honor the Pope and attend the funeral. The president looks to strengthen the ties between the United States and these countries in which he will be visiting. He'll be having many bilateral meetings and talks, and we look forward to the trip and hope to see many of you there. And the meetings in London this week, do they have any nexus with the plans in Saudi Arabia? Ms. I can't speak to that. However, I do have an update on meetings when it comes to the Russia, Ukraine war. I was just in the Oval Office with the President, Steve Woodkoff, and they wanted everybody to know that the negotiations continue. We feel again, we're hopefully moving in the right direction. And the special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will be heading to Russia again later this week to continue talks with Vladimir Putin. Is that why Rubio is not heading to London? Is he accompanying witkoff to Moscow? Ms. I can't speak for the secretary of State's travel schedule. I'd refer you to the Department of State. And then more broadly, just about the peace agreement, the talks that are ongoing. Rubio had said Secretary Rubio had said that if things don't go the right way, that the US Might need to take a step back. What does stepping back look like? Is that a step back from brokering peace, or would that imply a broader withdrawal from US Support for Ukraine and the war? Look, I think it would be unwise for me to broadcast that from this podium. Ultimately, that's a decision for the president to make, but he's made it very clear he wants to to see peace, he wants to see this war end and he wants to stop the killing on both sides of this war, and he's been very clear about that for quite some time, and he has grown frustrated with both sides of this war and he's made that very known. Caroline.

Brian, thank you, Caroline. Last week, the president talked about nonprofit groups, specifically taking on crew, and he hinted that there could be further actions taken against nonprofits. Does the White House have any plans for any sort of actions against NGOs, nonprofits or other similar groups? Is any of that coming up? Is that being worked on at this time?

Ms. I'll have to check in with our policy team and get back to you? Sure. Thank you.

Caroline Travis Gilmore with the Epoch Times. Are some colleges using taxpayer funds to further political agendas? And what is the administration's response to Harvard's lawsuit?

Sure. Well, the president has made it quite clear that it's Harvard who has put themselves in the position to lose their own funding by not obeying federal law. And we expect all colleges and universities who are receiving taxpayer funds to abide by federal law. It's quite simple. And the president made it clear he's not going to tolerate violations of federal law. He's not going to tolerate illegal harassment and violence towards Jewish American students or students of any faith on our campus offices across the country. And so we will be responding to the lawsuit in court. And again, it's quite simple. If you want federal dollars, obey federal law.

And just a quick follow up on China. Any response to reports that China is targeting US trade allies with potential retaliatory measures for supporting US agendas?

Ms. I think the numbers and the sheer number of countries that have reached out to the United States and reached out to this administration to cut good trade deals with speak for themselves. The entire world knows that they need the United States of America and they want to do business here. And so we'll stay focused on cutting good trade deals. On behalf of the American worker, Stephanie, thank you, Carolyn. Can you give us any additional details from the president's call with Netanyahu today? Ms. I did speak to the president about it. It was a good call. They spoke particularly about Iran and the negotiations that are underway with Iran and the United States. And the president has made it very clear repeatedly. But I'll reiterate, there is no daylight between the United States of America and the state of Israel. He stands strongly behind our ally. He's made it quite clear when it comes to Iran that we want to see a deal and Iran has a choice to make. But the president has also made it very clear, and he reiterated that in his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu today about the need for Iran to never obtain a nuclear weapon, I do have one more bit of news that I would like to share with all of you. Just give me one second to find it. In regards to the terrorist attack that took place in India earlier today, the president has been briefed by the national security advisor, and he's being kept up to speed as more facts are learned. What we know already is dozens were killed and even more were injured in a brutal terrorist attack in a popular tourist location in South Kashmir. President Trump will be speaking with Prime Minister Modi as soon as he possibly can to express his heartfelt condolences for those lost in. And our prayers are with those injured and our nation's support for our ally, India. These types of horrific events by terrorists are why those of us who work for peace and stability in the world continue our mission. So we'll give you a readout of that call later this afternoon. There's a lot of work to be had. You may hear from the president later this afternoon as well. And we'll see you all later. Thank you.

Were any Americans among those dual American citizens? We'll keep you focused.