Conservatives on social media praised newly minted White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s performance in her first press conference on Tuesday and made the case that her tenure would be a welcome change from the previous administration’s.

Leavitt stepped to the White House pressroom podium on Tuesday and answered questions from more than a dozen reporters with various political affiliations and spoke for almost an hour on Tuesday.

As Leavitt addressed the media, conservatives on social media reacted with positive reviews of her handling of the questions and the variety of reporters she called on. 

‘Karoline Leavitt is a rock star,’ actor James Woods posted on X. ‘These next four years are going to be sublime.’

‘Well @karolineleavitt is certainly up for the job,’ Fox News contributor Joey Jones posted on X. ‘Impressive, but not surprising.’

‘Both KJP and Jen Psaki were extremely dependent on their oversized binders jam-packed with scripted talking points,’ talk show host Addison Smith posted on X. ‘Today, @karolineleavitt took to the podium for the first time with a couple sheets of paper that she barely even glanced at. Competence is back.’

‘Damn White House press secretary @karolineleavitt absolutely smoking left wing reporters,’ Outkick founder and radio host Clay Travis posted on X.

‘This Press Secretary – Karoline Leavitt – is so refreshingly clear in the positions she articulates,’ Rush Limbaugh’s longtime friend and producer, James Golden, posted on X. ‘No dancing around facts, no avoidance of questions, in contrast to the previous Press Secretary.’

‘Karoline Leavitt is 30 minutes into a Press Briefing and she hasn’t looked up a single answer yet,’ Fox News contributor and comedian Jimmy Faila posted on X. ‘KJP would have gone through three binders and a Magic 8 Ball by now. THIS is why people wanna ditch DEI for Meritocracy.’

‘How refreshing to have a Press Sec at the podium who can answer questions directly and without reading word for word from a script,’ Coign Vice President Cassie Smedile Docksey posted on X. ‘We are so back.’

Leavitt, 27, is the youngest press secretary in the nation’s history, surpassing President Richard Nixon’s press secretary, Ron Ziegler, who was 29 when he took the same position in 1969. Leavitt was a fierce defender of Trump throughout his campaign against former Vice President Kamala Harris and also made her own political mark with a congressional run in 2022. 

Leavitt served in Trump’s first administration as assistant press secretary before working as New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik’s communications director after the 2020 election. She launched a congressional campaign in her home state of New Hampshire during the 2022 cycle, winning her primary but losing the election to a Democrat. 

Leavitt picked up the torch of press secretary from the Biden administration’s chief spokesperson, Karine Jean-Pierre. 

Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.

The Trump administration is offering buyouts for nearly all federal employees, including those who work remotely, as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to get employees back into the office, but they only have until Feb. 6 to opt-in.

During Trump’s first week in office, he issued several directives to the federal workforce, including a requirement that remote employees must return to in-person work.

‘After four years of incompetence and failure, President Donald Trump is committed to making our government efficient and productive again,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement on Tuesday. ‘American taxpayers pay for the salaries of federal government employees and therefore deserve employees working on their behalf who actually show up to work in our wonderful federal buildings, also paid for by taxpayers.

‘If they don’t want to work in the office and contribute to making America great again, then they are free to choose a different line of work, and the Trump Administration will provide a very generous payout of eight months,’ she added.

On Tuesday, a government-wide email was sent out to ensure all federal workers were on board with the Trump administration’s plan.

The email pointed to four pillars that Trump set forth, to bring accountability back to the federal government, including a return to in-person work, restored accountability for employees who have policy-making authority, restored accountability for senior executives, and a reformed federal hiring process based on merit.

‘The government-wide email being sent today is to make sure that all federal workers are on board with the new administration’s plan to have federal employees in office and adhering to higher standards,’ a senior administration official said. ‘We’re five years past COVID and just 6 percent of federal employees work full-time in office. That is unacceptable.’

The email noted that the majority of federal employees who have worked remotely since COVID will be required to return to their physical offices five days a week.

‘Going forward, we also expect our physical offices to undergo meaningful consolidation and divestitures, potentially resulting in physical office relocations for a number of federal workers,’ the email read.

For those who returned to office, the Trump administration thanked them for their ‘renewed focus’ on serving the American people. But the future of their position could not be guaranteed, according to the email.

For those who do not want to continue in their role with the federal workforce, the Trump administration thanked them for their services, informing them they will be provided with a ‘dignified, fair departure from the federal government utilizing a deferred resignation program.’

The program begins on Jan. 28 and will be available until Feb. 6, and should a federal employee choose to resign under the program, they will retain all pay and benefits, regardless of workload, and will be exempt from their in-person work requirements until Sep. 30, 2025.

The buyouts do not apply to military personnel of the armed forces, the U.S. Postal Services, positions related to immigration enforcement and national security, and any other positions specifically excluded by the agency the federal workers are employed by.

‘To be clear, as it was with President Trump’s executive order on Day One, implementation of return-to-work policies will be done by each individual agency in accordance with applicable law,’ the senior administration official said. ‘We expect 5 to 10 percent of federal employees to quit, and it could lead to $100 billion annually in savings for federal taxpayers.’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday defended the legality of President Donald Trump’s abrupt firing of at least 17 inspectors general, telling reporters that the administration is confident that the oustings, ordered across nearly every major federal agency, would survive any potential challenges in court.

Speaking to reporters for the first time from the podium of the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room, Leavitt defended Trump’s decision to fire, without warning, the inspectors general of nearly every Cabinet-level agency – an abrupt and unprecedented purge that shocked many outside observers.

Asked about the terminations Tuesday, Leavitt doubled down on Trump’s argument that the president is well within his power to fire the independent watchdogs, regardless of their Senate-confirmed status. 

Trump’s firings of the inspectors general included watchdogs for the Departments of Defense, State, Transportation, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Energy, Commerce, as well as the EPA, among others. 

‘It is the belief of this White House and the White House counsel’s office that the president was within his executive authority’ to do so, Leavitt said Tuesday.

Trump, she added, ‘is the executive of the executive branch, and therefore he has the power to fire anyone within the executive branch that he wishes to.’

Leavitt then referenced a 2020 Supreme Court decision, Seila Law LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which ruled that the CFPB’s agency structure violates the separation of powers under the U.S. Constitution.

‘I would advise you to look at that case, and that’s the legality that this White House was resting on,’ Leavitt said. 

Asked by the reporter whether the Trump administration believed its order would survive a lawsuit or court challenge from the former inspectors general, Leavitt responded affirmatively.

 ‘We will win in court,’ she said decisively, before moving on. 

The remarks come as Trump’s Friday night terminations have sparked deep concern from lawmakers. The terminations were criticized by Republicans and Democrats in Congress, who noted that the independent watchdogs were created to identify and root out government waste, fraud, abuse and misconduct. 

Many of the individuals fired were also installed during Trump’s first term. 

Lawmakers have noted that Trump ordered the terminations without notifying Congress of his intent to do so at least 30 days in advance, as required for the Senate-confirmed roles.

A group of House Democrats criticized the action in a letter this week as ‘unethical,’ arbitrary and illegal.

‘Firing inspectors general without due cause is antithetical to good government, undermines the proper stewardship of taxpayer dollars, and degrades the federal government’s ability to function effectively and efficiently,’ reads the letter, signed by Reps. Jamie Raskin, Maxine Waters, Adam Smith, Bennie Thompson and Gregory Meeks, among others.

Tuesday’s briefing is the first conducted by Leavitt as White House press secretary. At 27, she is the youngest person in White House history to serve in the role.

It is unclear how often Leavitt will hold press briefings. 

Her role was announced in November by Trump, who praised the ‘phenomenal job’ she did as his campaign and transition spokesperson.

‘Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator,’ Trump said in a statement announcing her role. ‘I have the utmost confidence she will excel at the podium, and help deliver our message to the American People as we Make America Great Again.’

Trump’s first term saw several White House advisers and communications aides, who struggled at times to communicate the views of a president who frequently opted to share his views directly via public rallies, briefings and social media posts.

This prompted high-profile clashes with some of the individuals tasked with officially communicating his views. 

Trump’s most recent White House press secretary, Stephanie Grisham, did not hold a single press briefing during her time in office. Famously, former White House communications aide Anthony Scaramucci served in his post for just 11 days.

Caroline Kennedy, the only surviving child of President John F. Kennedy and a former U.S. ambassador, sent a letter to lawmakers urging them not to confirm her cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who she referred to as a ‘predator’ and said was ‘unqualified’ both professionally and personally to be the next Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

RFK Jr. is set to sit before two Senate committees on Wednesday and Thursday this week, during which lawmakers will get a chance to probe him about various issues related to his nomination as Health and Human Services Secretary. In advance of those hearings, Caroline sent a letter to senators who will vote on her cousin’s confirmation, explaining why she thinks he should not be allowed to run the federal government’s chief public health agency. 

‘Throughout the past year people have asked for my thoughts about my cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr and his presidential campaign. I did not comment, not only because I was serving in a government position as United States Ambassador to Australia, but because I have never wanted to speak publicly about my family members and their challenges,’ Caroline said in a video posted online of her reading the letter. ‘But now that Bobby has been nominated by President Trump to be Secretary of Health and Human Services, a position that would put him in charge of the health of the American people, I feel an obligation to speak.’

In addition to arguing her cousin lacked the relevant government, financial management and medical experience to fill the role of HHS Secretary, Caroline said her cousin’s personal qualities were also a disqualifying factor. In the letter, Caroline called her cousin a ‘predator,’ arguing he has sought to exploit his family’s tragedies for publicity and led his siblings and cousins down a path of addiction.

‘It’s no surprise that he keeps birds of prey as pets, because Bobby himself is a predator,’ she said. ‘I watched his younger brothers and cousins follow him down the path of drug addiction. His basement, his garage, his dorm room were always the center of the action – where drugs were available and he enjoyed showing off how he put baby chickens and mice in a blender to feed to his hawks.’

Caroline did concede that such moments were ‘a long time ago,’ and that she admired her cousin for finding his way out of his addiction. ‘I admire the discipline that took,’ she said. ‘But siblings and cousins who Bobby encouraged down the path of substance abuse suffered addiction, illness and death, while Bobby has gone on to misrepresent, lie and cheat his way through life.’

Caroline added in the letter that her cousin was ‘addicted to attention and power,’ and also accused him of grandstanding ‘off my father’s assassination and that of his own father.’

‘It’s incomprehensible to me that someone who is willing to exploit their own painful family tragedies for publicity would be put in charge of America’s life and death situations.’

She also took shots at her cousin’s views on vaccines in the letter, calling them ‘dangerous and willfully misinformed.’ In the past, Kennedy has posited theories that vaccines cause autism, argued they are not safe for young children, and blamed them for a rise in chronic disease across the United States.  

‘Bobby preys on the desperation of parents of sick children, vaccinating his own kids while building a following hypocritically discouraging other parents from vaccinating theirs,’ she said. ‘Overseeing the FDA, the NIH, the CDC and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services agencies that are charged with protecting the most vulnerable among us is an enormous responsibility and one that Bobby is unqualified to fill.’

RFK Jr.’s confirmation remains uncertain as both Republicans and Democrats have taken issue with his stance on vaccines and other public health issues. Lawmakers from more rural states have also raised concern over the potential that RFK Jr. could severely disrupt the agriculture sector as a result of his staunch views on healthy eating. 

He will face questions from both the Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions this week. However, only the Finance committee will ultimately vote on whether to advance RFK Jr.’s nomination to a full floor vote.

DORAL, Fla. — Vice President JD Vance urged Republicans to stick together during a closed-door meeting at the House GOP annual issues conference on Tuesday, as tensions simmer over some lawmakers’ decisions to skip the multi-day event.

House Republicans are at President Donald Trump’s golf course and resort in Doral, Florida, for three days of discussions on how to execute his legislative agenda. 

Vance addressed the gathering on Tuesday in a speech that acknowledged the differences of opinion across the Republican conference, while imploring them to find a way to overcome those divisions and ‘be good’ to one another, two lawmakers in the room told Fox News Digital.

Those fractures flared up a short while later, however, when two lawmakers stood up to criticize colleagues who were not attending the event during the question and answer portion of Vance’s appearance, two other sources said.

It comes after Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, posted on X that he was not attending the retreat, arguing it was a waste of time.

‘It is being reported I am not at the so-called Republican retreat in Florida. I am not,’ Roy wrote. ‘I am in Texas, with my family & meeting with constituents, rather than spending $2K to hear more excuses for increasing deficits & not being in DC to deliver Trump’s border security [funding] ASAP.’

Roy told Fox News that he could not speak for fellow members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus who were missing from the retreat, adding, ‘We all have things that we’ve got to deal with.’

‘If you’re asking me to go spend money to go sit in a resort rather than doing our damn job… no, I’m not going to do that,’ he said.

Others argued that Roy and others’ absence was actively undermining attempts to unify behind a legislative roadmap.

‘Sadly enough, we have people sitting at home complaining about the meeting on Twitter, and they’re the ones who’d rather complain, attack, argue, than be part of the solution,’ Rep. Greg Murphy, R-N.C., told Fox News Digital. ‘We know who they are. We just have to deal with it.’

With a razor-thin margin in the House, Republicans must vote in virtual lockstep to pass any legislation without Democratic support.

One lawmaker said Vance embraced a ‘team message’ during his speech and ‘recognizes there will be differences, but we must come together once debate is over.’

Vance also told Republicans that Trump wants to raise the debt limit, something he will have to contend with this year, without support from or leverage by Democrats, Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., told reporters after the meeting. 

Other Republicans who spoke with Fox News Digital while leaving the event also embraced the Ohio Republican’s message and him as a messenger.

‘He’s saying the things about fiscal sanity that we need to hear,’ Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, said.

‘He’s smart as hell, he’s eloquent,’ Murphy said. ‘Trump really nailed it on that one – he was a great pick.’