A shock A-lister who has repeatedly criticized President Donald Trump was caught in the background of an intimate behind-the-scenes tour of the White House with Karoline Leavitt.
Trump‘s press secretary was taking part in a TikTok video touring her office and the White House grounds with running influencer Kate Mackz when the pair bumped into White Lotus star Jason Isaacs.
Isaacs famously lashed out at Trump by drawing comparisons to the ‘wealthy and self-centered’ character he played on the blockbuster show, and in Washington DC last week referred to the president as a ‘scumbag’, according to The Daily Beast.
‘I don’t know whether my clear dislike for the current president of America will affect me in future, whether I’m allowed to work there at all,’ the British Harry Potter alumni said.
As Mackz camera panned to a crowd out the front of a White House building, she was stunned to spot Isaacs among the group.
‘Hi guys, look who we ran into,’ Mackz said. ‘One week after hanging out with Patrick [Schwarzenegger]. We’ve got to get you on the running show.’
Isaacs was all smiles as Mackz and Leavitt stopped to chat, telling her ‘sure, I’m in,’ before adding: ‘Wait, running and talking at the same time?’
As the pair walked away to continue their tour, a beaming Leavitt said: ‘You just never know who you’re going to run into at the White House.’
Karoline Leavitt has peeled back the curtain and offered an intimate behind-the-scenes look at the White House
President Donald Trump ‘s press secretary was taking part in a TikTok video touring her office and the White House grounds with running influencer Kate Mackz when the pair unexpectedly bumped into White Lotus star Jason Isaacs
Isaacs (second from the right) was seen in the same frame as Leavitt (left) as she took Mackz on a personal tour of the White House
Isaacs was joined by other Hollywood stars ahead of the White House Correspondents Dinner, which Trump did not attend due to Pope Francis’ funeral.
Leavitt had earlier taken Mackz through her favorite room in the White House – the press briefing room – before taking her into her own office to meet the press team and have a peak at where she spends most of her day.
‘This is my office,’ Leavitt said as she opened a door with her name engraved on a plaque.
Pointing to a trio of framed pictures on the wall, she said: ‘I obviously have photos; of myself with the President…and that’s my baby, my nine month old son from our senior staff swearing in ceremony… my first press briefing.’
Then Mackz was shown Leavitt’s cork board above her desk. On it was a picture of herself with a group of school children from Georgia who she had met with.
Leavitt proudly pointed to another photo of her son, this time he was beaming as he sat on Air Force 1, the President’s plane.
‘My baby on his first Air Force One flight,’ the doting mom said.
The final item on her corkboard was a meme which Leavitt said she ‘loves.’
‘It’s a man pointing at a brain and it says no thanks, I won’t be needing that. I believe everything legacy media shows,’ she said, reading from the picture. ‘We want critical thinking around here.’
The running influencer garnered mass praise for her interview with Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz during the election campaign, but those same fans – including Walz’ daughter Hope – have now turned on her for speaking with Leavitt
Leavitt had earlier taken Mackz through her favorite room in the White House – the press briefing room – before taking her into her own office to meet the press team and have a peak at where she spends most of her day
Reflecting on her frequent briefings and the pressure to be accurate, across the news and be able to think on her feet, Leavitt told Mackz she ‘prays to God before every briefing’
The meme is representative of much of Leavitt and Trump’s criticism of legacy media and the driving force between this administration’s decision to amplify the voices of influencers and social media creators like Mackz.
Last week, Leavitt even hosted 100 influencers and creators for a ‘new media’ press briefing in the White House to celebrate Trump’s first 100 days back in office.
She has also taken steps to remove legacy media journalists’ access passes to press briefings, barring Associated Press reporters’ access after they refused to adapt to Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
A federal judge has since ordered the administration to restore the AP’s press access, citing First Amendment rights.
In the briefing room, Mackz noted the space was ‘a lot more intimate than I thought.’
Leavitt nodded, telling her that observation is one she hears all the time.
‘That’s the reaction of everyone who comes in here,’ she said. ‘It’s way smaller than you’d imagine. We need to make it bigger so we can allow more voices in.’
Reflecting on her frequent briefings and the pressure to be accurate, across the news and be able to think on her feet, Leavitt told Mackz she ‘prays to God before every briefing.’
Leavitt proudly pointed to another photo of her son, this time he was beaming as he sat on Air Force 1, the President’s plane. ‘My baby on his first Air Force One flight,’ the doting mom said
‘This is my office,’ Leavitt said as she opened a door with her name engraved on a plaque
Leavitt gushed about her demanding job, describing it as a ‘dream come true’ and a ‘full circle moment’ after starting her career in the first Trump administration as an intern
‘It’s a moment to just ground myself,’ she said.
‘But before the prayer comes a lot of preparation. My team and I are just reading the news, consuming everything.
‘I talk to the president multiple times before I take the podium to fully understand what he’s thinking and feeling so I can relay it to the public.’
Leavitt gushed about her demanding job, describing it as a ‘dream come true’ and a ‘full circle moment’ after starting her career in the first Trump administration as an intern.
Later as the tour of the grounds continued, Leavitt casually pointed to a slick red Tesla parked out the front. ‘By the way, that is the President’s Tesla,’ she said.
‘He has so generously told staff that we are allowed to drive it if we wish to take it out. I haven’t taken him up on the offer, but maybe I will soon.’
Mackz’ video has been seen more than one million times on TikTok, while an accompanying video on YouTube has racked up 3,000 views.
The running influencer garnered mass praise for her interview with Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz during the election campaign, but those same fans – including Walz’ daughter Hope – have now turned on her for speaking with Leavitt.
Hope left a message on the TikTok video demanding Mackz unpin the episode with her father in the wake of her latest video. That comment has since been deleted.
