Sarah Huckabee Sanders stated that Donald Trump is the most accessible president to the media of all time.

Posted by All In with Chris Hayes, Sep 19, 2026Checked Oct 30, 2026

Polygraph verdictTrue

Sources: 6 support1 context
Said: 1 time·
Confidence: 85%

All In with Chris HayesSep 19, 2026

Multiple outlets quote Sanders on September 18, 2026, saying Trump has been "more accessible and easier to talk to than any president in history," which matches the claim's "most accessible president to the media of all time" in substance. The claim's wording is a paraphrase, as the claimant's own passage says, and the sources do not contradict it.

This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.

What was said

… We are going to restore free speech in America. We believe in free speech and we're bringing it back starting today. We have saved free speech in America, and we've saved it strongly. Oh, he saved it, Michelle. Sarah Huckabee Sanders was back at the White House today. I don't know if you saw her standing behind the president when he was being asked in the pool spray in the Oval Office about all of this. And she stood there, had the audacity to stand there and say, paraphrasing, that this is the most accessible president to the media of all time. You know, don't do what are you guys talking about, basically? Your thoughts. I mean, I'm not even sure it's hypocrisy, because I think that, what Donald Trump and his allies have always meant by free speech is that conservatives have the freedom to say what …

All In with Chris Hayes · Sep 19, 2026· from the transcriptPost →

What we found

Supports. Mediaite and Yahoo News print Sanders' remarks in direct quotation, including "He's been more accessible and easier to talk to than any president in history."[1][2]

Supports. An Italian video-agency report and a video transcript carry the same quote from Sanders in the Oval Office, with the transcript showing the words as spoken.[3]

Supports. Other outlets (TV News Now, Townhall, Joe My God) repeat the same quoted line and attribute it to Sanders speaking in the Oval Office, adding to the consistency of the record.[4][5][6]

Context. A CNN video report describes Sanders, the former Trump press secretary, defending Trump's media access when asked about his threat to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico, which places the remark in context.[7]

Context. The extracted claim is a paraphrase of the passage ("paraphrasing"), and the quoted sources use "more accessible... than any president in history," which is equivalent to "most accessible... of all time." The statement was made on September 18, one day before the claim's stated date, and it is the same remark being reported.[1][2]

Sources

7 sources: 6 not rated, 1 tier 2

1Sarah Huckabee Sanders Gives Support to Trump's Media Banmediaite.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
2Sarah Huckabee Sanders: Hard To Argue Against A Free Press When You're Literally In The Oval Office With The Presidentyahoo.com · not rated · cited for: supports, context
3Governatrice Arkansas ai cronisti: Trump Presidente più accessibile Usa, difficile attaccarlo STyoutube.com · not rated · cited for: supports
4TV News Now on X: " NEW: Former WH Press Sec Sarah Huckabee ...x.com · not rated · cited for: supports
5Sanders: Glorious Leader Is “Right” To Ban The Pressjoemygod.com · not rated · cited for: supports
6Sarah Huckabee Sanders Easily Shut Down the Media's Outrage Over CNN's WH Ban by Making This Pointtownhall.com · not rated · cited for: supports
7Press sec from Trump's first term defends him as ' ...cnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: context

Where this claim was made

Said in 1 published post

All In with Chris Hayes · Sep 19, 2026Post →

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