Message to members from WHCA President Eugene Daniels

Hello members —

I want to thank you all for your amazing work especially over the last few weeks. They have been taxing and extraordinary and our membership has met the moment.

Today, I took over as president of our association and am honored for the chance to serve alongside  Weijia Jiang, Justin Sink, Sara Cook,  Andrew Harnik, Jacqui Heinrich, Courtney Subramanian and  Karen Travers.

First, on behalf of all of the board and association: an enormous thank you to Kelly O’Donnell, our tireless outgoing president. She has left a legacy in both measurable and intangible ways and, through a political year and election cycle unlike any other, has continued to push for broader press access and public accountability. We are all, and I am particularly indebted to Kelly for her service, leadership and friendship.

We just finished our first meeting of this new term. I wanted to share with you some remarks that sum up how I am feeling and viewing our work over the next year.

We start this new term in a perilous time for our country and profession. The importance of what we do has never been more apparent or felt more urgent, nor has access to the reliable and timely information we provide been more necessary.

In the midst of this moment, a reminder of the WHCA’s mission seems worthwhile: we share the belief, held by our country’s founders and enshrined in the First Amendment, that an independent news media is vital to the health of the republic. The White House Correspondents’ Association exists to promote excellence in journalism as well as journalism education, and to ensure robust news coverage of the president and the presidency.

That has not and will not change.

Distrust and, frankly, danger surround our jobs right now. It can be terrifying and sometimes demoralizing, but it can also be clarifying. That couldn’t have been more evident this weekend. When WHCA members like Doug Mills, Evan Vucci, Anna Moneymaker, Jabin Botsford and others ran toward an attempted assassination of a former president and current presidential candidate to chronicle that moment for the American people and for history, they represented the best of us.

They serve as a reminder of what all this is about: We are here to hold powerful people accountable but just as importantly, we are here to be the eyes and ears of people around the country and world.

For the next year, the rest of the board and I will continue to push for increased access no matter what happens in November. It’s vital to hold the line on the precedents that have already been set while fighting for even more going forward. That push won’t stop.

At a time where we are working on keeping and gaining back the trust of the public, I am committed to bringing more sunlight into how we operate for the public and members alike. There will be multiple different opportunities and lanes in which we do this — which I look forward to exploring with all of you at a later date.

Other priorities include building more robust relationships with other journalist member organizations, creating a mentorship program for people new to the beat, and developing fundraising streams to expand our reach and impact. And of course, we’re going to have a fabulous dinner that serves as a reminder of the work we do, celebrates the First Amendment and the work that our colleagues do every single day.

This board is accountable to you. I promise to have your back and do whatever is in my power to make your jobs covering the White House as easy as I possibly can. I am always accessible and open to your concerns and ideas.

I know we all have a lot of work ahead of us and the stakes have never been higher, but I couldn’t have a better board and membership beside me to meet this moment.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your continued service and commitment,

Eugene