Elections in the United States: the strange statement of Trump’s press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany

White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany is receiving criticism on social media, apparently estimating that one million people attended the so-called “MAGA Million March” in Washington DC.

On Saturday (US time), protesters furious at the US election result, which Donald Trump has lost, are gathering in the capital.

The march is known by various names, including the MAGA Million March (MAGA is Trump’s catchphrase for “Make America Great Again”), “March for Trump” and “Stop the Steal.”

Attendees support Trump’s position not to grant the election. Many believe unproven claims that the poll was prosecuted for fraud, though many cases brought by Trump’s team alleging fraud and voting irregularities have been dismissed.

While some of those protesting are Trump supporters every day, there are also some less tasty elements in the rally, including the far-right extremist group The Proud Boys.

As the crowd gathered, McEnany tweeted screenshots from Fox News and said the march was “AMAZING!”

“Over a MILLION protesters for President Trump descend into the swamp in support.”

But was it really a million people? While there was certainly a crowd in a city block or two, there seemed to be far fewer people than a million. Perhaps a few thousand would be more accurate.

McEnany’s throwaway “million” phrase drew some scorn.

“Great energy from Sean Spicer here,” said Sawyer Hackett, a member of the Obama administration staff, referring to one of McEnany’s predecessors who falsely said that Trump’s inauguration in 2017 drew the largest crowd of such events in the world. the history.

Others noted that when he walked away, the crowd thinned very quickly.

Journalist Max Burns said: “The inability to distinguish between a Thousand MAGA March and a Million MAGA March is another reason why Trump lost the counts in GA, PA, MI, AZ, NV and WI.”

CNN said there were “not even remotely” a million people at MAGA’s Million March.

Trump doubles claims of “massive” marches

US President Donald Trump criticizes suggestions that the “MAGA Million March” in Washington DC is not that big.

The protest has several names. Attendees urge Trump not to back down and endorse hitherto unproven claims of vote rigging.

Television networks have estimated that far from a million people, which was always going to be a difficult task, there are several thousand highs.

But Trump has said, you guessed it, “FAKE NEWS.”

He tweeted a snapshot of Dan Scavino, the White House deputy communications director, showing what seemed like a much fuller crowd to me.

“FoxNews and the fake news networks are not showing these mass gatherings. Instead, they have their reporters standing on almost empty streets. Now we have SUPPRESSION BY THE PRESS. MAGA!”

Fox News has called the crowds at the march “huge.”

The network said “tens of thousands” of people attended.

Most television stations have said the protest is large and has attracted “thousands”.

But that’s still less than the “millions” that White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany claimed were protesting.

Some television stations have broadcast zoomed images that appear to show the march covering a block or two of the capital.