The Shortest Press Secretary Stints: Where Spicer Ranks

image
Jeff PowersJeff Powers
Published: 21 Jul, 2017
2 min read

Sean Spicer's resignation as press secretary is adding more fuel to the argument that the Trump administration is growing all the more tumultuous.

At 182 days, Spicer outlasted a few predecessors.

However, each of the 5 men who held the position for less time than Spicer had his term impacted by special circumstances.

Here's the rank and stories behind each short stint:

1) Jerald terHorst - 31 Days. August 9, 1974 to September 9, 1974

TerHorst was press secretary for the first month of Gerald Ford's presidency. He held the position during one of our nation's most tumultuous times.

He was applauded by the press for "restoring openness and honesty to the White House" at a time when morale was low, after President Nixon's Watergate scandal.

TerHorst resigned in protest of Ford's unconditional pardon of former president Richard Nixon. It is still regarded as "a rare act of conscience by a high-ranking public official."

2) Jonathan Daniels - 47 Days. March 29, 1945 to May 15, 1945

Jonathan Daniels' served as White House press secretary in 1945 under Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman.

Daniels was a long-time friend of Franklin Roosevelt.

IVP Donate

In 1942, President Roosevelt persuaded him to join the war effort in Washington as assistant director of the Office of Civil Defense. Three years later he became the president's press secretary, but resigned shortly thereafter following the death of Roosevelt that year.

Harry Truman briefly brought him back on an interim basis before naming his own press secretary.

3) James Brady - 69 Days. January 20, 1981 - March 30, 1981

James Brady was the press spokesman for President Ronald Reagan.

In 1981, while traveling with the president, Brady suffered a gunshot wound to the head during the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan.

Brady was unable to work as the White House Press Secretary but remained in the position until the end of the Reagan Administration with Larry Speakes and Marlin Fitzwater performing the daily duties.

Four and Five Are Post-Election Fill Ins.

Roger Tubby - 33 Days. September 18, 1952 - January 20, 1953 (Harry Truman)

Jake Siewert - 112 Days. September 30, 2000 - January 20, 2001 (Bill Clinton)

These two press secretaries were post-election fill-ins under lame-duck presidents.

Let Us Vote : Sign Now!

Dwight Eisenhower and George W. Bush brought in their own press secretaries.

Photo Credit: a katz / shutterstock.com

You Might Also Like

broken california map
EXCLUSIVE: California Commissioner Says Lawmakers Gutted Their Funding BEFORE Prop 50
The fate of California’s independently drawn congressional districts will be decided on November 4, when voters weigh in on a legislative gerrymander and the suspension of congressional maps from the state's independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (CRC) under Proposition 50....
08 Oct, 2025
-
8 min read
fl-let-us-vote
Poll Shows Overwhelming Support for Opening Florida’s Primaries to 3.4M Independent Voters
A new statewide poll finds near-unanimous agreement among both Democratic and independent voters that Florida’s primaries should be opened to the state’s 3.4 million “No Party Affiliation” (NPA) voters who are currently shut out of taxpayer-funded elections....
10 Oct, 2025
-
3 min read
Proposition 50 voter guide
California Prop 50: Partisan Power Play or Necessary Counterpunch?
November 4 marks a special election for what has become the most controversial ballot measure in California in recent memory: Proposition 50, which would circumvent congressional districts drawn by the state’s independent redistricting commission for a legislative-drawn map....
01 Oct, 2025
-
9 min read