NH Democrat Chairman Accused Of Sexism After 'Classless' Attack On White House Spox Leavitt

By Michael Graham, NH Journal

While New Hampshire native Karoline Leavitt was winning rave reviews for her performance in her first-ever press briefing as White House spokeswoman, one Granite Stater went out of his way to give her a thumbs down.

New Hampshire Democratic Party chair Ray Buckley.

Leavitt grew up in Atkinson, N.H. and, at 27 years old, she’s the youngest person to hold the position. Many Granite Staters were impressed by St. Anselm College grad’s ability to handle the high-stakes event Tuesday, fielding tough questions from an adversarial press.

“Not only was she flawless in delivery, she displayed a mastery of the subjects. Most importantly, her overall approach and performance, I believe, matched what the president is looking for as his spokesperson,” said Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Leavitt’s alma mater.

But Buckley didn’t let hometown pride keep him from insulting Leavitt on social media.

Responding to a Twitter/X post from WMUR reporting on Leavitt’s starting her new job, Buckley wrote, “To the utter embarrassment of the Granite State.”

And then he added a message he claimed represented the view of the people of New Hampshire: “World, don’t blame us for Karoline, we have rejected both Trump and Karoline every time they have been a November ballot.”

Alicia Preston Xanopoulos, a veteran GOP communications professional, said she was “disappointed” by Buckley’s gratuitous attack.

“It is a major accomplishment to become White House press secretary and regardless of what one thinks of her boss or personal politics, every Granite Stater should be proud,” Xanthpoulos told NHJournal.

“I also wonder what Chairman Buckley would say if a Republican man in his sixties and a position of power mocked a young Democratic woman?”

What struck several political insiders about Buckley’s insults targeting Leavitt is that they go against the “603 spirit” of New Hampshire, where people take pride in the state and the accomplishments of its people.

One frustrated Democrat noted local news coverage of Ohio State’s national championship football team featured the New Hampshire roots of the team’s coach, Ryan Day, and offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly.

“We like to see our local people go national,” the Democrat said. “This was really classless of Ray.”

Former GOP Speaker of the House Donna Sytek, however, said she wasn’t surprised.

“That’s just Ray being Ray. He’d probably find a way to criticize Mother Teresa!”

Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s spokesperson, John Corbett, offered his theory about why the Democratic Party chairman was being so rude.

“Ray Buckley is still reeling from his humiliating losses in November and is choosing to lash out at a working mom and one of New Hampshire’s own — it’s embarrassing. Gov. Ayotte is proud to have Karoline representing New Hampshire in the Trump administration.”

And House Majority Leader Jason Osborne punched back against Buckley’s “embarrassment” attack on Twitter/X.

“I am sure Karoline will continue to embarrass Democrats in NH and everywhere each time she takes the podium. Meanwhile, the rest of us will have our popcorn ready to cheer and enjoy the show.”

This story was originally published by the NH Journal, an online news publication dedicated to providing fair, unbiased reporting on, and analysis of, political news of interest to New Hampshire. For more stories from the NH Journal, visit NHJournal.com.