Major Garrett delivered Friday’s scoop that President Trump planned to temporarily end the government shutdown, the newsman’s first big get since being named CBS’ chief Washington correspondent last month.
“CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett reports that Mr. Trump is expected to back a continuing resolution (CR) — which would fund the government at current levels — and reopen the government for a few weeks,” CBSN reported.
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The streaming news service also said that Trump planned to OK a “clean” three-week CR, minus wall funding. “The border security debate will continue while the resolution is in place, but the move is designed to take the stress off the system and assure that federal workers get paid,” said the news service.
At a time when celebrity journalism is the rage, Garrett’s rise to the top post of chief Washington correspondent is proof that the old school path for journalists is still alive and well.
“When I was young and growing up in San Diego, I didn’t read many books. But I read two newspapers, the Union-Tribune in San Diego and the Los Angeles Times, and usually all three weekly magazines,” said Garrett.
“No one in my family in any generation had been a reporter or a writer. I wanted to be both. No road map. No connections. No clue,” he said.
But he had drive and a journalism degree from the University of Missouri that led to jobs in Amarillo, Texas, and Washington. “Four presidents, five presidential campaigns, and many employers later, I find myself the chief Washington correspondent for CBS News, the network we watched at home when I was young,” he said.
The CBS White House correspondent since 2012, Garrett has big plans for his new post. He plans to anchor more on the network’s streaming service, CBSN, and take his popular podcast, “The Takeout,” on the 2020 presidential campaign trail to interview candidates.
“I want this new job, which I probably will not begin fully until April or so, to combine digital and TV news. That means writing more for the web and bringing history, context, and experience to big stories,” said Garrett.
Garrett, also a former Fox News White House reporter, has won kudos for being a straight news reporter.
In his most recent book, Mr. Trump’s Wild Ride: The Thrills, Chills, Screams, and Occasional Blackouts of an Extraordinary Presidency, he gave the president credit for achieving some of his agenda items, including reducing costly regulations.
He also challenged reports that Trump is inaccessible. He told Secrets after the September publishing of his book, “There is more access to this president than there was to Obama. We see him all the time. He takes questions a lot.” He added, “We see him and interact with him and punch in questions with far more frequency than with Obama. Probably more so than for W. Bush.”
