Speed Reads

too little too late?

Sean Spicer says he 'absolutely' regrets those comments about inauguration crowd size

Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer burst onto the scene with his boasts about the crowd size at President Trump's inauguration. In his first-ever press briefing the Saturday after Inauguration Day, Spicer scolded reporters for suggesting that the turnout for Trump's big day was anything short of huge, insisting — regardless of photos and Washington Metro ridership suggesting otherwise — that this "was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in-person and around the globe."

Now, he wishes he could take it all back.

The morning after he poked fun at himself in a surprise Emmys cameo on Sunday night, Spicer admitted to The New York Times that he regrets making those claims. "Of course I do, absolutely," Spicer said.

Still, Spicer said he certainly hopes Trump doesn't take offense at his performance mocking his crowd size claims, as this was just "an attempt to poke a little fun at myself." Spicer admitted he didn't give the White House any advanced warning of his appearance.

In fact, Spicer said he didn't really tell anyone. When he and his wife departed for Los Angeles, he was wearing a disguise. The Times reported that Spicer "wouldn't say what it was, though a friend of his hinted that it might have included fake facial hair."

Read more at The New York Times.