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{{Short description|Governor of Arkansas since 2023}}{{Redirect-distinguish|Sarah Sanders|Sarah Saunders}}{{Use American English|date=June 2021}}{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}

factoids

| 2namedata2 = Sean Spicer| term_start2 = January 20, 2017| term_end2 = July 26, 2017| predecessor2 = Eric Schultz| successor2 = Raj Shah| birth_name = Sarah Elizabeth Huckabee198213}}| birth_place = Hope, Arkansas, U.S.Republican Party (United States)>RepublicanBryan Sanders|May 25, 2010}}| children = 3| father = Mike Huckabee| mother = Janet HuckabeeArkansas Governor's Mansion>Governor's MansionOuachita Baptist University (Bachelor of Arts>BA)| caption = Sanders in 2023| signature = pos=centerfilename=Sarah Huckabee Sanders comments on the Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting.oggtype=speechPittsburgh synagogue shooting>Tree of Life Synagogue ShootingRecorded October 29, 2018}}governor.arkansas.gov}}}}Sarah Elizabeth Huckabee Sanders (born August 13, 1982) is an American politician serving since 2023 as the 47th governor of Arkansas. Sanders is the daughter of Mike Huckabee, who served from 1996 to 2007 as Arkansas's 44th governor.NEWS, Schonfeld, Zach, Sarah Sanders wins Arkansas governor's mansion,weblink November 8, 2022, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, Nexstar Media Group, November 8, 2022, A member of the Republican Party, she was the 31st White House press secretary, serving under President Donald Trump from 2017 to 2019. Sanders was the third woman to be White House press secretary.WEB, Governor Sanders,weblink 2023-01-13, Arkansas Governor - Sarah Huckabee Sanders, en-US, She also served as a senior advisor on Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. Sanders became the Republican nominee in the 2022 Arkansas gubernatorial election and won, defeating Democratic nominee Chris Jones.As press secretary, Sanders was the spokesperson for the Trump administration's policy decisions, and had a confrontational relationship with the White House press corps.NEWS, Grynbaum, Michael M., June 14, 2019, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Steadfast Trump Fan, Never Wavered, en-US, The New York Times,weblink September 25, 2020, 0362-4331, WEB, Tasneem, Nashrulla, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders Is Leaving The White House,weblink June 13, 2019, September 25, 2020, BuzzFeed News, en, MAGAZINE, Williams, Paige, Is Sarah Huckabee Sanders the Future of the Republican Party?,weblink June 17, 2019, September 25, 2020, The New Yorker, en-us, NEWS, June 13, 2019, Noah, Bierman, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Trump's White House press secretary, is stepping down,weblink September 25, 2020, The Los Angeles Times, en-US, When interviewed by investigators as part of the Mueller probe, she admitted making false statements in her role.NEWS,weblink Sanders's 'Slip of the Tongue' Would Be a Problem in Some White Houses. Not Trump's., Karni, Annie, April 19, 2019, The New York Times, April 20, 2019, Haberman, Maggie, Maggie Haberman, en-US, 0362-4331, NEWS,weblink A Portrait of the White House and Its Culture of Dishonesty, Baker, Peter, April 18, 2019, The New York Times, April 20, 2019, Haberman, Maggie, Maggie Haberman, en-US, 0362-4331, NEWS, Smith, David, June 13, 2019, Sarah Sanders exits after two fraught years as Trump hails 'a very fine woman', The Guardian,weblink June 13, 2019, Sanders hosted fewer press conferences than any of the 13 previous White House press secretaries.NEWS, June 13, 2019, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders to go, en-GB, BBC News,weblink September 25, 2020, In June 2019, Trump tweeted that Sanders would be leaving her role as press secretary.WEB, Jordyn, Phelps,weblink Press Secretary Sarah Sanders leaving White House, ABC News, June 13, 2019, NEWS, Baker, Peter, Rogers, Katie, Sarah Huckabee Sanders Leaving White House at the End of the Month,weblink The New York Times, June 13, 2019, June 13, 2019, On January 25, 2021, she announced her candidacy for governor of Arkansas; Trump endorsed her. She secured the Republican nomination in May 2022; her general election opponents were the Democratic nominee, Chris Jones, and the Libertarian nominee, Ricky Dale Harrington. She is the first woman to hold the office, the first woman to be governor of a state of which her father was also governor,WEB, 2022-11-08, Sarah Huckabee Sanders 1st woman elected Arkansas governor,weblink 2022-11-09, Associated Press, AP News, en, WEB,weblink CNN Projection: Republican Sarah Huckabee Sanders will win Arkansas governorship | CNN Politics, Maureen, Chowdhury, November 9, 2022, CNN, and the youngest current governor.WEB,weblink Sanders announces co-chairs of her inauguration, Lindsey, Millar, November 22, 2022, Sanders has been recognized in Fortune and Time magazine's "40 under 40". She is the author of The New York Times bestseller Speaking for Myself, is a former Fox News Channel contributor, and served on the Fulbright board.

Early life and education

Sarah Elizabeth Huckabee was born on August 13, 1982, in Hope, Arkansas.NEWS, Austin, Shelbi, 10 Things You Didn't Know About Sarah Huckabee Sanders,weblink April 8, 2019, U.S. News & World Report, October 25, 2017, She is the youngest child and only daughter of Mike Huckabee and Janet Huckabee (née McCain), both politicians.NEWS, Gutierrez, Lisa, May 11, 2017, Nine things to know about Sarah Huckabee Sanders, deputy White House press secretary,weblink May 12, 2017, The Kansas City Star, The McClatchy Company, Kansas City, Missouri, NEWS,weblink Yes, Sarah Huckabee Sanders Is Mike Huckabee's Daughter, McBride, Jessica, May 11, 2017, Heavy.com, May 17, 2017, She has two brothers, John Mark Huckabee and David Huckabee. After graduating from Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas,WEB,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders to be deputy White House press secretary, January 19, 2017, Arkansas Times, Max, Brantley, March 5, 2017, Huckabee attended Ouachita Baptist University (her father's alma mater) in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. She was elected student body president of the university and was active in Republican organizations. In 2004, she graduated from the university with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in political science and minoring in mass communications.WEB,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders to be deputy White House press secretary, Brantley, Max, January 19, 2017, Arkansas Times, March 27, 2017, NEWS,weblink Nine things to know about Sarah Huckabee Sanders, deputy White House press secretary, Gutierrez, Lisa, May 11, 2017, The Kansas City Star, May 17, 2017, WEB,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders: From Ouachita to the White House, Colson, Margaret, Arkansas Baptist News, September 11, 2017, May 4, 2018, November 17, 2018,weblink dead,

Early political career

File:Mike Huckabee and Sarah Huckabee Sanders.jpg|thumb|left|Huckabee Sanders, center, and her father Mike Huckabee with U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret SpellingsMargaret SpellingsSanders had no experience in governing for most of her career, instead serving as a political consultant and a campaign insider. She was involved in her father's first campaign for the United States Senate in 1992. Describing the unsuccessful bid in an interview for The Hill, she said: "He didn't really have much of a staff, so our family has been very engaged and very supportive of my dad. I was stuffing envelopes, I was knocking on doors, I was putting up yard signs." Her father said of her childhood, "I always say that when most kids are seven or eight years old out jumping rope, she was sitting at the kitchen table listening to political commentators analyze poll results." Huckabee said that he and his wife spoiled Sarah at times. He called her "doggone tough" and "fearless" due to having grown up with two brothers.NEWS,weblink Who is Sarah Huckabee Sanders? How her family prepped her for the White House briefing room, Schallhorn, Kaitlyn, May 12, 2017, Fox News, May 16, 2017, Sanders was a field coordinator for her father's 2002 reelection campaign for governor of Arkansas. She was a regional liaison for congressional affairs at the U.S. Department of Education under President George W. Bush, and worked as a field coordinator for Bush's reelection campaign in Ohio in 2004.WEB,weblink Team, May 26, 2015, Tsamoutales Strategies, Tallahassee, Florida, July 22, 2017, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20150526190741weblink">weblink May 26, 2015, Sanders is a founding partner of Second Street Strategies in Little Rock, a general consulting services providerWEB,weblink About Us: Sarah Huckabee Sanders, September 13, 2016, Second Street Strategies, Little Rock, Arkansas, July 22, 2017, dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160913043747weblink">weblink September 13, 2016, for Republican campaigns.WEB,weblink Services: Campaigns, Second Street Strategies,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160913083041weblink">weblink September 13, 2016, dead, September 19, 2017, She worked on national political campaigns and campaigns for federal office in Arkansas. Sanders was also vice president of Tsamoutales Strategies. She was national political director for her father's 2008 presidential campaign. She was also a senior adviser to Tim Pawlenty in his 2012 presidential run. Sanders was involved in the campaigns of both U.S. senators from Arkansas, managing John Boozman's 2010 campaign and serving as a senior adviser to Tom Cotton's 2014 campaign. After her father's 2008 campaign, she worked as executive director of Huck PAC, a political action committee. Sanders was also the national campaign manager for the ONE Campaign, a global nonprofit founded by Bono aimed at ending global poverty and preventable diseases. In 2016, after managing her father's presidential campaign, she signed on as a senior adviser for Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and ran its communications for coalitions.WEB, Huckabee's daughter joins Trump team; Rubio to campaign with Hutchinson,weblink arkansasnews.com/, February 25, 2016, February 3, 2017, WEB, Sarah Huckabee Sanders joining Trump's communications staff,weblink The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, September 4, 2016, February 3, 2017,

Trump administration

(file:SarahHuckabeeSanders.jpg|thumb|right|Sanders in 2017 while White House deputy press secretary)After Trump was elected, Sanders was named to the position of deputy White House press secretary in his new administration. On May 5, 2017, she held her first White House press briefing, standing in for Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who was serving on Naval Reserve duty.NEWS,weblink Huckabee Sanders pinch hits for Spicer at White House, Fabian, Jordan, May 5, 2017, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, May 6, 2017, She continued to cover for Spicer until his return to the podium on May 12. She stood in for Spicer during the dismissal of James Comey and the controversy following it. Her defense of the Trump administration's actions led to some speculation that Trump was considering promoting her to replace Spicer.NEWS, Hickey, Jennifer G., Is Sarah Huckabee Sanders 'auditioning' for bigger White House role?,weblink May 12, 2017, Fox News, May 12, 2017, This was denied at the time by her father.NEWS,weblink Huckabee: Daughter 'has no desire' to take Spicer's job, Hensch, Mark, May 12, 2017, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, May 14, 2017, But on May 26, The Wall Street Journal again suggested that Sanders was being considered as a possible replacement for Spicer, in the context of wider staff changes and the investigation into alleged communications with Russia.NEWS,weblink White House considering vetting Trump's tweets, Easley, Jonathan, May 27, 2017, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, May 27, 2017, She continued to fill in for Spicer occasionally.NEWS,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders replaces Spicer as White House press secretary, Pappas, Alex, July 21, 2017, Fox News, July 21, 2017, After Trump dismissed FBI director James Comey in May 2017, Sanders said that she "heard from countless members of the FBI that are grateful and thankful for the President's decision" to fire him. Emails show that several FBI heads of regional field offices and high-ranking FBI members reacted with dismay to Comey's firing.NEWS,weblink Emails indicate James Comey was well-liked by FBI staffers, Shabab, Rebecca, February 5, 2018, CBS News, June 15, 2018, After Trump sought to discredit Comey and the FBI, Sanders was questioned on a tweet she had sent during the 2016 presidential election that "when you're attacking FBI agents because you're under criminal investigation, you're losing".WEB, Sarah Sanders challenged on pre-election tweet, April 13, 2018,weblink CNN, June 15, 2018, WEB,weblink Old Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweet about 'attacking FBI' goes viral after Trump's tweetstorm, Wyrich, Andrew, The Daily Dot, December 4, 2017, June 15, 2018, After Comey accused Trump of lying about the circumstances in which he was dismissed, Sanders defended Trump: "I can definitively say the president is not a liar, and I think it's frankly insulting that question would be asked."WEB, Palmeri, Tara, Sarah Sanders: 'The president is not a liar',weblink Politico, June 8, 2017, June 15, 2018, On June 27, 2017, during a press briefing, Sanders criticized the media, accusing them of spreading "fake news" about Trump. Sanders cited a video created by James O'Keefe. Although unsure of the video's accuracy, she said, "I would encourage everyone in this room and, frankly, everybody across the country to take a look at it." The video features CNN's health and medical producer, John Bonifield, saying that CNN's coverage of the Trump campaign's alleged links to Russia are "mostly bullshit" and driven by ratings.NEWS,weblink A Costly Retraction for CNN and an Opening for Trump, Grynbaum, Michael M., June 27, 2017, The New York Times, June 28, 2017, NEWS,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders lambastes fake news — and then promotes a journalist accused of deceptive videos, Blake, Aaron, June 27, 2017, The Washington Post, June 28, 2017, NEWS,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20170627211717weblink">weblink dead, June 27, 2017, The Latest: Sanders attacks CNN, media in briefing, June 27, 2017, Associated Press, June 28, 2017, Special counsel Robert Mueller found that Russia did interfere with the election, but "did not find that the Trump campaign, or anyone associated with it, conspired or coordinated with the Russian government in these efforts".WEB, Mueller finds no collusion with Russia, leaves obstruction question open,weblink 2023-01-13, www.americanbar.org, en, On June 29, 2017, Sanders said during a press briefing that the "president in no way, form or fashion has ever promoted or encouraged violence." In February 2016, Trump had said during a campaign speech: "So if you see somebody getting ready to throw a tomato, knock the crap out of them, would you?... I promise you, I will pay for the legal fees. I promise." PolitiFact also "found at least seven other examples in which Trump offered public musings that showed a tolerance for, and sometimes even a favorable disposition towards physical violence."WEB,weblink Has Donald Trump never 'promoted or encouraged violence,' as Sarah Huckabee Sanders said?, Jacobson, Louis, Tobias, Manuela, July 5, 2017, PolitiFact, June 6, 2018, File:Secretary Tillerson Poses for a Photo With Senior U.S. and Chinese Government Leaders During a Tour of the Forbidden City in Beijing (37565580414).jpg|thumb|Sanders with Rex Tillerson, Jared Kushner, Robert Lighthizer, and Wang Yi in Beijing, China, November 2017]]On July 21, 2017, after Spicer announced that he was going to resign, newly appointed White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci announced that Sanders would take the role of White House press secretary.NEWS,weblink Sean Spicer, White House press secretary, resigns, Diamond, Jeremy, July 21, 2017, CNN, July 21, 2017, Collins, Kaitlan, Zeleny, Jeff, Bash, Dana, Sanders is the third woman to hold the role of White House Press Secretary after Dee Dee Myers in 1993 and Dana Perino in 2007.NEWS, Lemire, Jonathan, Lucey, Catherine, July 22, 2017, For Sanders, Path to Trump Press Secretary Began in Arkansas,weblink Associated Press, New York City, July 22, 2017, Arkansas-raised, Sanders is married to a Republican consultant and moved her young family to Washington to be part of the administration., live,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20170922002036weblink">weblink September 22, 2017, Sanders is the first mother, and first working mother, to ever hold the position.In August 2017, Sanders said Trump "certainly didn't dictate" a statement released by Donald Trump Jr. about the 2016 Trump Tower meeting with Russians. She also said that Trump "weighed in, offered suggestion like any father would do." In January 2018, Trump's lawyers wrote to the special counsel investigation that "the President dictated" the statement Donald Trump Jr. released. In June 2018, the media asked Sanders to explain the discrepancy in the statements, but she repeatedly refused to answer, saying: "I'm not going to respond to a letter from the president's outside counsel ... We've purposefully walled off, and I would refer you to them for comment", and "I'm an honest person".WEB, How Statements on Trump and Trump Tower Meeting Changed,weblink Associated Press, CBS News, June 5, 2018, WEB,weblink Sanders dodges questions about Trump Tower statement, Fabian, Jordan, June 4, 2018, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, June 6, 2018, WEB, Cummings, William, 'I'm an honest person,' defensive Sarah Sanders says when grilled about credibility,weblink USA Today, June 6, 2018, November 7, 2021,weblink dead, In October 2017, CBS News's Jacqueline Alemany asked Sanders whether the official White House position was that all 16 women who accused Trump of sexual harassment were lying. Sanders responded, "Yeah, we've been clear on that since the beginning, and the President has spoken on it", without elaborating.NEWS, October 27, 2017, White House: Women who accused Trump of sexual harassment are lying; Trump to announce Fed pick next week,weblink live, CBS News,weblink December 27, 2017, July 30, 2020, In November 2017, Trump retweeted three unverified anti-Muslim videos by Britain First, a far-right British group with a history of posting misleading videos. Sanders commented, "Whether it's a real video, the threat is real and that is what the president is talking about, that's what the president is focused on, is dealing with those real threats, and those are real no matter how you're looking at it." Theresa May, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, was among those to criticize Trump's actions.NEWS, Stracqualursi, Veronica, Travers, Karen, Phelps, Jordyn, November 30, 2017, White House defends Trump's retweets of far-right group,weblink live, ABC News,weblink July 22, 2020, July 30, 2020, In February 2018, after Rob Porter left the White House over domestic abuse allegations, Sanders said that Porter's background check was "ongoing, and the White House had not received any specific papers regarding the completion of that background check". After FBI director Christopher Wray testified that the FBI had finished and submitted its security-clearance investigation on Porter to the White House earlier in July 2017, Sanders instead claimed that it was instead the White House's personnel security office's investigation that was ongoing, which contradicted her earlier statement that the clearance process "doesn't operate within the White House".NEWS,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders pleads ignorance as the Rob Porter mess worsens, Borchers, Callum, The Washington Post, June 15, 2018, NEWS,weblink FBI director contradicts White House timeline on Rob Porter abuse probe, says agency finished background check last summer, Mangan, Dan, CNBC, June 15, 2018, Breuninger, Kevin, She said that Porter had made a "personal decision" to leave the White House, while White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah said that Porter was "terminated".WEB,weblink The White House press office changed its story on Rob Porter 3 times in one day, Coaston, Jane, February 8, 2018, Vox (website), Vox, June 15, 2018, File:DW2eapcV4AUNn q.jpg|thumb|Sanders with Ivanka Trump, Lauren Gibbs, and Shauna Rohbock at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea]]In March 2018, Sanders said of the Stormy Daniels–Donald Trump scandal, "there was no knowledge of any payments from the president" to Daniels. In May 2018, Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani said that Trump had repaid his lawyer Michael Cohen $130,000 after Cohen paid Daniels. In response to questions about the discrepancy, Sanders claimed that she did not know of this development and that her earlier statement was based on the "best information" she had at the time.NEWS,weblink Sanders: I didn't know about Trump's 'hush money' payment, Fredericks, Bob, May 3, 2018, New York Post, June 15, 2018, In mid-June 2018, when questioned on the Trump administration's family separation policy, which resulted in the separation of migrant children from their parents at the Mexico–United States border, Sanders falsely blamed Democrats for the policy and said "it is very biblical" to implement the policy.WEB, Higgins, Tucker, White House on separating migrant children from parents: 'It's very biblical to enforce the law', June 14, 2018,weblink CNBC, June 15, 2018, Christian leaders such as Daniel DiNardo and Franklin Graham strongly disagreed with the policy, calling it "immoral" or "disgraceful", while Bible scholar and professor Matthew Schlimm said that the Bible was being misused just as slave traders and Nazis had done.WEB,weblink Christian Leaders To Jeff Sessions: The Bible Does Not Justify Separating Families, Jennifer, Bendery, Jennifer Bendery, June 15, 2018, Huffington Post, June 16, 2018, In July 2018, Sanders said the Trump White House would discuss allowing Russian agents to interrogate former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul.NEWS,weblink White House says Trump to discuss allowing Russia to question US citizens, Thomsen, Jacqueline, July 18, 2018, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, July 19, 2018, The Russian government had harassed and intimidated McFaul for years, without specifying what criminal allegations they would interrogate him about.NEWS,weblink White House: Trump will consider letting Russia question investor, former ambassador, Mueller, Eleanor, July 18, 2018, Politico, July 19, 2018, NEWS,weblink Outrage erupts over Trump-Putin 'conversation' about letting Russia interrogate ex-U.S. diplomat Michael McFaul, The Washington Post, en, July 19, 2018, NEWS,weblink Putin Asked Trump to Let Russia Question McFaul, White House Says, Bloomberg News, Bloomberg, July 19, 2018, NEWS,weblink 'Absurd, crazy': Trump discussed allowing Putin to interrogate US ambassador, Guardian staff, agencies, July 19, 2018, The Guardian, July 19, 2018, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said that she could not answer on the White House's behalf, but that the State Department considered the Russian allegations against McFaul "absolutely absurd".NEWS,weblink Russia's claims about Americans it seeks to question are 'absurd,' says State Department, Breuninger, Kevin, July 18, 2018, CNBC, July 19, 2018, Wilkie, Christina, Several current and former diplomats condemned the White House's willingness to entertain Russian interrogation of a former U.S. ambassador.NEWS,weblink U.S. Officials 'at a Fucking Loss' Over Latest Russia Sellout, Ackerman, Spencer, July 18, 2018, The Daily Beast, July 19, 2018, In an August 2018 press conference, Sanders was repeatedly asked by Jim Acosta, a CNN reporter, to say that the press was not the "enemy of the people", and she did not do so.NEWS,weblink Sarah Sanders refuses to say press is not 'enemy of the people', The Independent, August 2, 2018, Sanders had a tumultuous relationship with the press and was the subject of numerous personal attacks regarding her looks and her weight.WEB, Biden will deliver State of the Union address on Feb. 7,weblink 2023-01-13, CBS News, January 13, 2023, en-US, That same month, Jeff Bezos' newspaper, The Washington Post, wrote that Sanders and her deputy Bill Shine strategized optimal times to release announcements that the security clearances of various Trump critics and officials involved in the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election had been revoked.NEWS,weblink White House drafts more clearance cancellations demanded by Trump, The Washington Post, August 18, 2018, NEWS,weblink Trump aides discussed using security clearance revocations to distract from negative stories: report, Wise, Justin, August 17, 2018, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, August 18, 2018, The announcements were intended to be released to distract from news cycles that were unfavorable to the White House.The morning after publication of the September 5, 2018, New York Times op-ed "I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration", Sanders used her official government Twitter account to tweetWEB, Sanders, Sarah,weblink For those of you asking for the identity of the anonymous coward, @PressSec on Twitter,weblink September 17, 2018, September 6, 2018, live, that the anonymous writer was a "gutless loser" and to charge that those in the newspaper's opinion department are "the only ones complicit in this deceitful act". Her September 6 tweet gave the telephone number of the newspaper's opinion desk, and two former White House ethics chiefs declared that her tweet had violated federal law in an abuse of power, similar to her June 23, 2018, tweet specifically naming the restaurant that had refused her service in the Red Hen restaurant controversy.MAGAZINE, Williams, Paige, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Trump's Battering Ram,weblink The New Yorker, September 24, 2018,weblink September 20, 2018, live, Print edition title: "The Mouthpiece".File:President Trump Welcome the Prime Minister of Israel to the White House, 25 March 2019.jpg|thumb|President Trump, joined by Netanyahu, Pence, Kushner, and Sanders, signs the proclamation which recognized Israel's 1981 annexation of the Golan HeightsGolan HeightsIn early November, CNN's Jim Acosta engaged in a verbal argument with Trump. While Acosta was asking Trump a question, an intern, at Trump's direction, tried to take away Acosta's microphone. Later in the day, Acosta's White House credentials were suspended, a move that was widely criticized as unprecedented.WEB,weblink Reporters condemn White House decision to bar CNN's Acosta, Brian, Stelter, November 8, 2018, CNN Business, November 11, 2018, The next day, to justify the White House's actions, Sanders released a video of the moment the intern tried to grab the microphone from Acosta's hand. The video originated from conspiracy theorist Paul Joseph Watson of the far-right website Infowars, and was allegedly altered to make Acosta seem aggressive and excluded him saying, "Pardon me, ma'am", to the intern. Watson denied that the video was doctored in any way.WEB, Covucci, David, Did Sarah Sanders post a doctored InfoWars video to justify CNN ban?,weblink dailydot.com, Daily Dot, June 13, 2019, June 13, 2019, NEWS,weblink White House shares doctored video to support punishment of journalist Jim Acosta, The Washington Post, March 7, 2019, CNN Communications Executive called Sanders's sharing of the video "shameful" and the White House News Photographers Association said it was "appalled" by her actions, called video manipulation "deceptive, dangerous and unethical", and said that what Sanders did was "equally problematic".WEB,weblink White House shares doctored video to support punishment of journalist Jim Acosta, Drew, Harwell, November 9, 2018, MSN, November 11, 2018, During the 2018–2019 federal government shutdown caused by Congress's refusal to fulfill Trump's demand for $5.7 billion in federal funds for a U.S.–Mexico border wall, Sanders argued that the wall was necessary, claiming that the CBP stopped nearly 4,000 known or suspected terrorists when they crossed the Mexico border in 2018. Data obtained by NBC News contradicted Sanders's assertion, showing that from October 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018, only six immigrants on the No Fly List (also known as the terror watch list) were encountered at the ports of entry on the Mexico border.WEB,weblink Only six immigrants in terrorism database stopped by CBP at southern border from October to March, NBC News, January 7, 2019, January 11, 2019, In an interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News, Wallace countered her claim of nearly 4,000 terrorists, saying, "I know the statistic. I didn't know if you were going to use it, but I studied up on this. Do you know where those 4,000 people come—where they are captured? Airports."NEWS,weblink Chris Wallace Shuts Down Sanders' Claim About Terrorists Crossing Border, Wilstein, Matt, January 6, 2019, The Daily Beast, January 11, 2019, In January 2019 Sanders said on the Christian Broadcasting Network that she thinks "God calls all of us to fill different roles at different times, and I think that he wanted Donald Trump to become president".NEWS, Brody, David, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders: 'God Wanted Donald Trump to Become President',weblink CBN News, January 30, 2019,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20190131205452weblink">weblink January 31, 2019, live, File:Sarah Sanders last appearance as Press Secretary.jpg|thumb|Sanders, President Donald TrumpDonald TrumpOn June 13, 2019, Trump tweeted that Sanders would be leave her role as press secretary on June 30. Under Sanders, the White House set at least three records for the most days between formal press briefings. The White House had a 41-day streak that ended in January 2019, then a 42-day streak that ended in March 2019, followed by 94 days and counting without a formal press briefing when Sanders's departure was announced.WEB, Hutzler, Alexandra, Sarah Sanders has not had a formal press briefing in 43 days, setting a new White House record,weblink Newsweek, April 23, 2019, June 14, 2019, WEB, Gilmour, Jared, Press secretary Sarah Sanders is out — 94 days after her last White House briefing,weblink The Miami Herald, June 14, 2019,

Mueller report findings

On April 18, 2019, the first volume of the Mueller report, the Special Counsel Investigation report compiled by Robert Mueller, revealed that Sanders admitted that she had lied during a press conference when she said various things about James Comey, the former FBI director. This included lying about the firing of former Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein's connection to Comey's firing, and her claim that "countless" FBI agents had lost faith in him. She repeatedly told the press that "countless members" of the FBI had contacted her to complain about Comey, but admitted to investigators that her claims were "a slip of the tongue" and "not founded on anything". When a redacted version of the special counsel's report was publicly revealed, Sanders defended herself, saying that her comments about the FBI agents were made in "the heat of the moment" and unscripted.NEWS, Sarah Sanders reiterates Comey claims despite admitting to lying,weblink April 21, 2019, The Guardian, April 19, 2019, Sanders also lied about Trump's being in charge of a statement regarding the Trump Tower meeting. He worked on said statement with his advisor Hope Hicks, and when the emails about that statement were made public, it was reported that he had helped with it himself.WEB, Lind, Dara, 7 times the Mueller report caught Sean Spicer and Sarah Sanders lying to press,weblink vox.com, Vox (website), Vox, June 13, 2019, June 13, 2019, According to the report, Sanders also made false statements about when Trump decided to fire Comey, as well as lying about Sessions's and Rosenstein's involvement in Comey's firing. The New York Times said that the revelation of false statements showed a "culture of dishonesty" at the White House. Of Sanders defending her comments on FBI agents, The New York Times wrote: "It has been a hallmark of the Trump White House never to admit a mistake, never to apologize and never to cede a point. This case was no different."Sanders's rhetoric about the report was found to be misleading or false. In March 2019, after Attorney General William Barr released a summary of Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, Sanders falsely claimed that the investigation's findings were "a total and complete exoneration". The summary of the report stated it "does not exonerate him".WEB,weblink AP FACT CHECK: Mueller probe doesn't totally exonerate Trump, Yen, Hope, March 24, 2019, Associated Press, AP News, June 5, 2019, Sanders repeated her suggestion that the report exonerated Trump in May 2019, and falsely claimed that Mueller had "closed the case". The Associated Press noted, "Mueller did not fully exonerate Trump or declare that a possible case against Trump to be 'closed.' Mueller announced his work was finished specifically leaving it open for Congress to decide on possible charges of wrongdoing."WEB,weblink AP FACT CHECK: Trump distorts findings of Russia probe, Yen, Hope, Tucker, Eric, June 1, 2019, Associated Press, AP News, June 5, 2019,

Career after the White House

On August 22, 2019, Fox News announced that Sanders would become a contributor to the network, effective September 6.NEWS, FOX NEWS SIGNS SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS TO CONTRIBUTOR ROLE,weblink August 22, 2019, Fox News, August 22, 2019, During the December 2019 Democratic presidential debate, Sanders mocked Joe Biden's stutter on Twitter. She apologized the next day.{{citation|website=Politico|title=Sarah Sanders apologizes after mocking Biden's stutter|date=December 20, 2019|first=Abbey|last=Marshall|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2019/12/20/sarah-sanders-joe-biden-stutter-088555}}Following the January 6 United States Capitol attack, the editor of Forbes warned corporations against hiring Sanders and other Trump "propagandists", writing, "Forbes will assume that everything your company or firm talks about is a lie."NEWS, Lane, Randall, Randall Lane (journalist), A Truth Reckoning: Why We're Holding Those Who Lied For Trump Accountable,weblink January 10, 2021, Forbes,

Governor of Arkansas

2022 gubernatorial election

(File:2022 Arkansas gubernatorial election results map by county.svg|thumb|350px|alt=Final results by county| Final results by county in 2022:{{collapsible list#E27F7F{{legend80–90%}}#D72F30{{legend60–70%}}#E27F7F{{legend40–50%}}}}{{collapsible list#7996e2{{legend60–70%}}#7996e2{{legend40–50%}}}})On January 25, 2021, Sanders announced her candidacy for governor of Arkansas, an office her father, Mike Huckabee, held from 1996 to 2007.WEB, Sarah Sanders Running for Arkansas Governor,weblink Associated Press, January 25, 2021, January 25, 2021, February 1, 2021,weblink dead, A day later, Trump endorsed Sanders, calling her "a warrior".NEWS,weblink Trump rewards Sarah Huckabee Sanders with early endorsement for Arkansas gov, NBC News, Stahl, Chelsea, January 26, 2021, On July 16, 2021, Sanders broke the Arkansas gubernatorial fundraising record by raising over $9 million.WEB,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders Smashes State Gubernatorial Fundraising Record, Yahoo! News, July 16, 2021, June 29, 2022, Running during the COVID-19 pandemic, she pledged not to implement any mask mandates or vaccine mandates.WEB, Castronuovo, Celine, July 23, 2021, Huckabee Sanders vows not to impose mask, vaccine mandates if elected governor of Arkansas,weblink July 24, 2021, The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, en, She also supported restrictions on abortion, saying that she would not support exceptions for rape and incest in anti-abortion legislation.{{Citation |title=Sarah Huckabee Sanders talks abortion laws & COVID-19 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIsZK5PvcLg |language=en |access-date=2022-09-04}}In October 2021, the Arkansas Law Notes published an article that called into question whether Sanders was even eligible to run for governor.WEB,weblink An Open Governor's Seat, Open Constitutional Question, and the Need for an Answer, Samuel Steele, McLelland, James R., Baxter, Law.mark.edu, June 29, 2022, The article centers on whether Sanders meets the State Constitution's residency requirement of seven years.Sanders handily won the Republican primary and defeated Democratic nominee Chris Jones in the general election.On November 9, 2022, it was announced that Sanders had won the race and would become Arkansas's first female governor, and the first woman to be governor of a state where her father was governor.

Tenure

Sanders was sworn in on January 10, 2023. On her first day in office, Sanders banned the term Latinx from being officially used in the state government.NEWS, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders bans term 'Latinx' on her first day in office,weblink 12 January 2023, NBC News, en, The decision came after hearing feedback from Hispanic leaders in the state, state lawmakers and senior members of staff.WEB, Chavez, Gustavo Valdes, Nicole, 2023-01-12, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders bans use of term 'Latinx' in state documents {{!, CNN Politics |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/01/12/politics/latinx-sarah-huckabee-sanders-order-arkansas-reaj/index.html |access-date=2023-01-13 |website=CNN|language=en}}In 2023, Sanders signed a bill to allow a privately funded anti-abortion "monument to the unborn" to be displayed on Capitol grounds. The monument will mark the number of abortions performed in Arkansas before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.WEB, 2023-03-20, New law allows anti-abortion monument at Arkansas Capitol,weblink 2023-03-20, Associated Press, AP News, en, On March 31, 2023, Sanders declared a state of emergency in Arkansas after the state was hit by a tornado. This activated the National Guard, which began assisting with the recovery effort. Sanders also announced that she had spoken to President Joe Biden, who promised Arkansas federal aid to assist with the recovery.WEB, Moon, Melissa, 2023-03-31, Four killed, dozens injured by tornado in Wynne, AR,weblink 2023-06-28, WREG.com, en-US, NEWS, 2023-04-02, Davies, Alys, Mackintosh, Thomas, US tornadoes: Death toll grows as extreme storms ravage several states,weblink 2023-04-02, BBC News, en-GB, In June 2023, Sanders's office purchased a custom-made lectern for $19,029.25. The Arkansas Republican Party later reimbursed the governor's office for the lecternCathey, Libby (25 October 2023). Sarah Huckabee Sanders defends herself from podium controversy after unusual $19K payment, ABC News several days after a Freedom of Information Act request for the purchasing documents was filed.NEWS, Betts, Anna, 2023-10-10, In Arkansas, a $19,000 Lectern for the Governor Draws Scrutiny,weblink 2024-01-19, The New York Times, en-US, 0362-4331, An executive assistant was instructed to add the note "to be reimbursed" to the original invoice and to leave the note undated.WEB, 2023-10-10, Scrutiny of Arkansas governor's $19,000 lectern deepens after new records are released,weblink 2024-01-20, AP News, en, After substantial media coverage of the purchase,DeMillo, Andrew (4 October 2023). A $19,000 lectern for Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders sparks call for legislative audit, Associated Press the Arkansas State Legislature began an audit. Sanders denied any impropriety and said she welcomed the audit.The auditWEB, Special Report Arkansas Legislative Audit Review of Selected Transactions and Procurements Arkansas Governor's Office For the Period May 1, 2023 through December 10, 2023,weblinkweblink 2024-04-16, 2024-04-16, showed that the lectern was purchased from Beckett Events LLC, a Virginia-based company run by political consultant and lobbyist Virginia Beckett, with the lectern costing $11,575. Beckett charged $2,500 for a "consulting fee" and $2,200 for the road case. The remainder of the cost represented shipping, delivery, and a credit-card processing fee.WEB, Medina, Eduardo, April 15, 2024, Audit Questions Purchase of $19,000 Lectern by Arkansas Governor’s Office,weblinkweblink April 16, 2024, April 16, 2024, Similar lectern models are listed online for $7,500 or less, while the purchased lectern had no microphone or electronic components aside from a light. Sanders said it had additional features that contributed to its cost, including a custom height.WEB, 2024-04-15, Audit says Arkansas governor's office potentially violated laws with $19,000 lectern purchase,weblinkweblink 2024-04-16, 2024-04-16, AP News, en, The audit also found that a staff member had contacted an Arkansas-based equipment dealer and received a quote for portable podiums ranging in cost from $800 to $1,500.After Sanders proposed to deny public access to certain gubernatorial records, she faced public pushback. She later signed a law limiting public access to information about her security detail and her travels.In October 2023, Sanders signed an executive order to eliminate the usage of "woke, anti-woman words" from official state documents.WEB, Webb, Jack A., 2023-10-19, No 'womxn' allowed: Sanders signs order eliminating 'woke' words from Arkansas business,weblink 2023-10-23, KATV, en, Banned terms include "womxn", "birth-giver", and "chestfeeding". The order was criticized by the ACLU.WEB, October 19, 2023, Arkansas governor bans 'anti-women' words from use in state government,weblink 2023-10-23, thv11.com, en-US, On April 5, 2024, Sanders declared a five-dayWEB, Sanders Releases Funds from the Response and Recovery Fund Ahead of the Eclipse - Arkansas Governor - Sarah Huckabee Sanders,weblinkweblink 2024-04-10, 2024-04-16, governor.arkansas.gov, en-US, state of emergency in Arkansas ahead of the solar eclipse of April 8, releasing $100,000 from the state Response and Recovery Fund to assist with the state's response to the eclipse while waiving certain federal restrictions on commercial traffic for up to 14 days. Money from the disaster fund was to be used at the discretion of A.J. Gary, director of the Department of Public Safety's Division of Emergency Management, "to defray both program and administrative costs".WEB, 2024-04-05, Sanders declares state of emergency in Arkansas ahead of eclipse {{!, Arkansas Democrat Gazette |url=https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2024/apr/05/sanders-declares-state-of-emergency-in-arkansas/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240410150029weblink |archive-date=2024-04-10 |access-date=2024-04-16 |website=www.arkansasonline.com |language=en}}

In popular culture

In 2010, Sanders was named one of Time{{'}}s "40 under 40" in politics.MAGAZINE,weblink 40 Under 40, Time (magazine), Time, October 14, 2010, March 27, 2017, content.time.com, At the 2018 White House Correspondents Dinner, comedienne Michelle Wolf made several jokes at Sanders's expense. Maggie Haberman of The New York Times tweeted, "That @PressSec sat and absorbed intense criticism of her physical appearance, her job performance, and so forth, instead of walking out, on national television, was impressive." MSNBC co-host Mika Brzezinski responded, "Watching a wife and mother be humiliated on national television for her looks is deplorable."WEB,weblink Morning Mika Tweet, Twitter, April 29, 2018, Like several of her White House colleagues, Sanders was also satirized on Saturday Night Live,WEB,weblink Sarah Huckabee Sanders Sketches, NBC, July 21, 2017, where she was portrayed by Aidy Bryant.In April 2023, Sanders responded to the Anheuser-Busch brewing company over its promotion of TikToker Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender woman and activist. Anheuser-Busch's use of Mulvaney in promoting Bud Light was met with a boycott of Bud Light by many conservative celebrities. Sanders supported the boycott by promoting "Real Women" beer can koozies. On her Twitter account, she captioned a video, "Real women don't have to fake it." In addition to Sanders, the koozies also featured images of Alabama governor Kay Ivey, Iowa governor Kim Reynolds, and South Dakota governor Kristi Noem.WEB, Sforza, Lauren, Huckabee Sanders selling 'Real Women of Politics' koozies amid Bud Light backlash,weblink The Hill (newspaper), The Hill, April 24, 2023, 26 April 2023, Sanders's activities met with mixed media responses.MAGAZINE, Otten, Tori, Sarah Huckabee Sanders's Bud Light Ad Is So Bad It's Funny,weblink The New Republic, November 2022, 26 April 2023, WEB, Spady, Aubrie, Sarah Huckabee Sanders trolls Bud Light with koozie for 'real women',weblink Fox News, April 24, 2023, 26 April 2023,

Personal life

Huckabee met Bryan Sanders during her father's 2008 presidential campaign. She was the campaign's field director, and Sanders was hired as a media consultant. The couple married in 2010.NEWS, Gibbs, Constance, May 10, 2017, 9 facts about deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, New York Daily News, New York City,weblink July 22, 2017, WEB, June 27, 2010, Huckabee daughter weds in Virgin Islands ceremony,weblink subscription, March 5, 2017, The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, They have three children and a golden retriever.NEWS, Klein, Betsy, July 27, 2017, The spokeswomen: A low-key milestone as Sanders becomes White House press secretary, CNN,weblink March 7, 2018, Bryan Sanders is a political strategist recognized as a "Rising Star in American Politics" by Campaigns and Elections magazine. He is a graduate of Colby College with a degree in government.On June 22, 2018, a co-owner of a 26-seat restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, {{convert|200|mi}} from Washington, D.C., asked Sanders to leave the restaurant because she worked for the Trump administration, giving rise to the Red Hen restaurant controversy.NEWS,weblink The owner of the Red Hen explains why she asked Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave, Selk, Avi, June 25, 2018, The Washington Post,weblink July 4, 2018, live, Murray, Sarah, Sanders was diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer in September 2022. She had surgery to remove her thyroid and the surrounding lymph nodes.NEWS, DeMillo, Andrew, Sarah Sanders undergoes surgery for thyroid cancer,weblink Associated Press, AP News, September 16, 2022, en,

Electoral history

{{Election box begin no change|title=2022 Arkansas gubernatorial election Republican primary resultsWEB,weblink 2022 Preferential Primary and Nonpartisan Judicial General Election, }}{{Election box winning candidate with party link no change|candidate=Sarah Huckabee Sanders|party=Republican Party (United States)|votes=289,249|percentage=83.14%}}{{Election box candidate with party link no change|candidate=Francis "Doc" Washburn|party=Republican Party (United States)|votes=58,638|percentage=16.86%}}{{Election box total no change|votes=347,887|percentage=100.0%}}{{Election box end}}{{Election box begin|title=2022 Arkansas gubernatorial electionWEB, 2022 General Election and Nonpartisan Judicial Runoff Election,weblink }}{{Election box winning candidate with party link|party=Republican Party (United States)|candidate=Sarah Huckabee Sanders|votes=571,105|percentage=62.96%|change=-2.37%}}{{Election box candidate with party link|party=Democratic Party (United States)|candidate=Chris Jones|votes=319,242|percentage=35.20%|change=+3.43%}}{{Election box candidate with party link|party=Libertarian Party (United States)|candidate=Ricky Dale Harrington Jr.|votes=16,690|percentage=1.84%|change=-1.06%}}{{Election box total|votes=907,037|percentage=100.0%|change=N/A}}{{Election box turnout|votes=907,037|percentage=50.81%|change=}}{{Election box registered electors|reg. electors=1,799,136}}{{Election box hold with party link no swing|winner=Republican Party (United States)}}{{Election box end}}

References

{{reflist}}

External links

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• {{URL|twitter.com/SarahHuckabee|Official Twitter}}
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|as=Vice President}} {{Current U.S. governors}}{{Current Arkansas statewide political officials}} {{Governors of Arkansas}}{{WHPS}}{{Trump Executive Office}}{{Authority control}}