Trump campaign adviser not worried leaked Maryanne Trump Barry audio will hurt election chances


White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller brushed aside leaked audio recordings in which President Trump's older sister and retired federal judge, Maryanne Trump Barry, can be heard sharply criticizing her younger brother.
In the tapes, which were secretly recorded by Trump's niece, Mary Trump, and obtained by The Washington Post, Barry can be heard saying the president "has no principles" and lies frequently. She also claims he paid someone to take his "entrance exams" so he could get into the University of Pennsylvania.
Miller said he isn't worried Barry's comments will have an affect on swing voters ahead of the November election. He dismissed the audio as nothing more than an example of a "sibling rivalry," which he said is quite common.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
As for Trump's take on his relationship with his sister, Miller said he's only heard the president speak highly of Barry and her accomplishments as a judge.
Meadows was a little harsher on Barry, whom he criticized for not attending the funeral of her other younger brother Robert, who died last week, and he also attempted to dispute some of her claims. Barry said Trump "doesn't read," but Meadows made the case the president reads more than anyone he knows. Ultimately, though, Meadows said it boils down to "just another day and another attack." Tim O'Donnell
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-war
Talking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Sudoku medium: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants