White House Denies NYT Report on Vance's Social Media Break

White House spokesperson Steve Cheung has vehemently denied a New York Times report that suggested Chief of Staff Susie Wiles advised Vice President JD Vance to cease engaging in social media disputes. Cheung labeled the report "complete fake news," stating that the alleged conversation never occurred and that the New York Times refused to publish the White House's denial.

“

This isn’t true. We denied it to the New York Times and they refused to run our quote. Complete fake news. This supposed “conversation” never happened.

The New York Times article, citing sources familiar with the interactions, claimed that Wiles had advised Vance to take a break from social media, including X (formerly Twitter), because the online fighting was beneath his office. The report further alleged that Vance used to frequently scroll through his phone during meetings, unlike President Trump who posts on Truth Social but avoids direct online replies.

“

Susie Wiles, Mr Trump’s chief of staff, recently advised Mr Vance to take a break from social media, as have other officials in the West Wing, according to people familiar with those interactions, because the fighting was beneath his office.

JD Vance himself had previously stated that he took a break from X for Lent, a period of religious observance. He explained that not having social media as a distraction had made him more productive, allowing him to read instead of scrolling. However, Vance also expressed a desire to reinstall X, citing its value in exposing him to "unfiltered raw opinions" and helping him avoid living in a "crazy bubble" due to his constant travel with Secret Service.

“

It's one of these things where not having that as a distraction, I think, has made me much more productive.

"I think one of the good things about social media is that it actually exposes you to unfiltered raw opinions, and that's one of the things that I need to hear as a political leader," Vance said. "So I will definitely reinstall it, but I've enjoyed my little break from it."

“

I think one of the good things about social media is that it actually exposes you to unfiltered raw opinions, and that's one of the things that I need to hear as a political leader.