Latest news with #KayleighMcEnany
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Evangelical wealth building conference accused of exploitative sales tactics lands in Spokane Saturday
Jun. 5—Thousands will congregate in the Spokane Arena Saturday for the evangelical wealth building conference Life Surge, an all-day star-studded event that many describe as spiritually and fiscally fulfilling — but that also faces mounting accusations of leveraging faith and a megachurch atmosphere to lull attendees to buy $38,000 classes while even encouraging them to go into debt to do so. Life Surge declined an interview, requested written questions and did not respond to them. Saturday's event will be replete with celebrity evangelical speakers, most of whom have been traveling with Life Surge throughout the year or longer, such as former quarterback Tim Tebow, the Benham brothers — whose star rose in prominence after HGTV canceled their upcoming reality TV show "Flip it Forward" over statements opposing homosexuality and gay marriage — and former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany. They have previously featured TV stars from Duck Dynasty, Shark Tank and Road Rules. But Life Surge also has a knack for recruiting high-profile sports figures from the communities where they host their conferences. At a March conference in Hawaii, the organization highlighted Marcus Mariota, quarterback for the Washington Commanders and the first Hawaii-born athlete to win the Heisman Trophy. In Philadelphia, they recruited five current and former members of the Philadelphia Eagles. Spokane may not have a high-profile professional sports team, but it does have Gonzaga University men's basketball, so the featured regional speaker on Saturday is head coach Mark Few. Few did not respond to a request for comment; Gonzaga emphasized that neither the university nor the athletics department is involved in the event. The events mix compelling life stories and top-notch worship music with advice that organizers say can help attendees connect with God and build wealth for "Kingdom Impact" in order to better do God's work on earth. It's all encapsulated in "The 4 W's of Kingdom Impact": Worship, Wisdom, Work and Wealth. Since its founding in 2019, Life Surge has received hundreds of glowing reviews about its atmosphere, its musical and celebrity lineup, and its linking of Christ with financial well-being. The organization emphasizes this largely positive feedback whenever it faces criticism for the sales pitches Life Surge has sandwiched inside its conferences. It starts with the tickets to the conference itself. While the prices of Saturday's tickets have gone up marginally in the last three months, records of the tickets page on the Internet Archive suggest Life Surge made use of the perennial marketing trick of a steep time-sensitive discount, complete with a countdown clock that once expired appears to be immediately replaced with another timely offer. Though the site lists the basic tickets — called "executive" — at a full price of $97, the actual sale price appears to have started at $29 and never climbed above $40. The "ultimate" package, which includes photos with Tebow, Few and other featured speakers, is now only listed under its full price of $497, up from the Early Bird Special of $249, but the sale price only seems to have expired after those packages sold out sometime in April. Once at these conferences, attendees are reportedly pitched mid-session on further "Impact" workshops on the stock market, real estate and starting and growing a business, all for $97 dollars — an incredible deal, speakers proclaim from the stage, because the true value of the class is $1,500. This offer demands urgent action, because it is only available that very day at the conference — notably, tickets to these workshops only seem to be sold at the conference, and are not listed elsewhere, "full price" or not. "(The speakers) said you can learn how to build wealth that will help us feed the hungry, help veterans and of course the poor," said Christian Minister John Simmons, who made a critical video comparing the event to a timeshare sales pitch after attending a 2023 Life Surge conference in St. Louis. "I watched as a majority of the room stood up and were drawn into the arms of the volunteer army of Life Surge credit card readers." This felt exploitative, Simmons continued. The conference's prolific advertisements hadn't made mention of pitching him on future classes; they had highlighted guest speakers and Christian artists. "That's what I thought I was getting into when I bought a ticket — I bought a ticket for this event!" Simmons quipped. "I thought the conference was supposed to help me learn how to grow in work and wealth and wisdom and worship, but they were saying, nope, this three-day seminar, this thing will do it." Life Surge sent Simmons a cease-and-desist letter shortly after his video was posted, claiming it contained copyrighted materials from their event, he said. He has since reuploaded the video with nearly all photos or recordings from the event removed. The biggest pitch, however, is only made to people who do sign up for these additional three-day seminars. The workshops themselves have received mixed reviews, but once there, those who find the lessons insufficient are pitched on mentorship programs that cost as much as $38,000. For those who question whether they can afford to spend the equivalent of a down payment on a house on a wealth-building mentorship program, Life Surge reportedly has an answer: debt. Leading up to this last big pitch, from the conference to the workshops, attendees have reported being assuaged by speakers that there are two good reasons to go into debt: real estate and "wisdom." Attendees have reported being encouraged to dip into retirement accounts to pay for these classes. If attendees don't have those kinds of assets, credit card applications are reportedly available on site, according to a recent Philadelphia Inquirer article about the organization and its founder Joe Johnson's past business dealings. In response to critical reviews of these tactics, Life Surge has repeatedly argued that they state on their website that they offer additional services, though they don't address the lack of transparency regarding the specific offerings. When criticized specifically for encouraging people to go into debt for mentorship programs, the organization appears to double down. "Life Surge believes in being the hands and feet of Jesus by equipping others with resources — but to do that, we must first be good stewards of the resources entrusted to us by the Lord, serving others and not being held back by a position of lack," the organization has replied to dozens of negative reviews and complaints to the Better Business Bureau. In response to questions from the Philadelphia Inquirer, Life Surge appears to have argued that criticism of its offerings is not based in good-faith concerns about their practices, but rather an attack on their faith itself. "Life Surge is not for everyone. It is unapologetically a faith-based organization helping people take control of their own financial future by empowering them with the skills to become successful investors," the organization wrote. "This brave, honest, and faith-filled stance can be antithetical to viewpoints of others and as such we expect criticism."
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Fox News star Kayleigh McEnany delights fans with gender reveal live on air
Fox News star Kayleigh McEnany shared that she is having a baby girl in a gender reveal that aired live on the network. The pregnant 37-year-old presenter was joined by husband Sean Gilmartin and their two children - Blake, five, and Nash, two - in the adorable moment which aired on Wednesday. During their appearance on the program, a sweet clip played of Blake and Nash helping to reveal their new sibling's gender. In the video, the brother and sister were filmed breaking into a cupcake that contained either pink or blue frosting. Ahead of ripping into their sweet treat, Blake predicted that the new arrival would be a girl – and low and behold she was right. 'It's a girl!' she cried out after seeing that the cupcake was pink inside. 'Is it?' Sean was heard asking. 'You've got pink in there?' 'Yeah!' Blake confirmed. The presenter was joined by her husband Sean Gilmartin and their two children Blake and Nash in the adorable moment which aired on Wednesday 'We're so excited,' Kayleigh said of the news in the studio. 'We as a family are ready to be outnumbered. 'We are moving from man-to-man coverage to zone defense, so we will be outnumbered in our family and it's been a special time.' Kayleigh concluded the segment by reading aloud a Bible verse from Psalm 139. Fox News fans delighted over Kayleigh's sweet gender reveal and sent messages of congratulations. Taking to the comments, one said: 'Congratulations Kayleigh! You have a beautiful family.' 'Thanks for sharing your beautiful news with us,' another said. 'Congratulations to you and your husband and children,' a third added. A fourth added: 'I love this so much!!! I love seeing the difference between your son and daughter with the reveal, so adorable!!' The exciting development comes two months after Kayleigh previously shared news of her pregnancy live on Fox News in March. 'Sean and I are expecting our third child which we're so excited about,' she said at the times, to whoops and cheers from her co-hosts. Kayleigh, who served as White House Press Secretary between April 2020 and the end of President Donald Trump's first term in January 2021, even shared a photo of her ultrasound scan and said she'd been enjoying a 'very special time' with her family. She finished her announcement with two Bible quotes and joked: 'With all that said, can I unbutton my jacket now? 'It's very tight. I'm busting outta here.' Co-host Harris Faulkner, who was sitting on the couch next to Kayleigh, offered congratulations on behalf of the Outnumbered team. Kayleigh then produced a frame of the ultrasound she brought from home and said she has similar frames for her two older children on display there too. In 2023, Kayleigh told that she'd struggled to conceive Nash. In 2020, she had an elective double mastectomy after discovering she carried the BRCA2 gene mutation. It increases the risk of breast cancer by 84 percent and ovarian cancer by 27 percent. She said she and her husband knew they wanted to have a second child shortly after Blake was born in the summer of 2021. Writing in her book Serenity in the Storm, she explained how her first pregnancy had 'happened rather quickly' and 'with relative ease.' But Kayleigh says she began to grow concerned in early 2022 when she still wasn't pregnant. She credits intensive prayer with helping her to conceive Nash.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats find unlikely defender over Biden decline revelations – Trump's former press secretary
Kayleigh McEnany, President Donald Trump's former press secretary, has surprisingly admitted that she thinks many Democrats are 'exonerated' by new revelations about President Joe Biden's decline while in office. McEnany, 37, was Trump's spokesperson from April 2020 to January 2021. She made the remarks Friday night while discussing Original Sin, a new book about Biden's decline by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios's Alex Thompson. In the exposé, Tapper and Thompson claim that only a small group of aides had regular access to Biden and the First Lady. 'Six or seven? That was the number that had the close-up access? And I say this because in some ways, I think it's exonerating of much of the Democratic Party,' McEnany said Friday night on Fox News's Jesse Watters Primetime. McEnany said it's common for only an exclusive group of people to have access to the president. 'I worked at the RNC, didn't have much access to President Trump,' she said. 'Worked on the campaign. Didn't have much access to President Trump at the time. It really was a small cadre in the West Wing.' The book, which hit the shelves this week just days after Biden revealed his cancer diagnosis, details the then-president's failed reelection bid and the alleged cover-up of his decline, physically and mentally. The book made several shocking claims, including that Biden's aides wanted to put him in a wheelchair. 'Biden's physical deterioration — most apparent in his halting walk — had become so severe that there were internal discussions about putting the president in a wheelchair, but they couldn't do so until after the election,' Tapper and Thompson wrote. Tapper and Thompson also detailed an alleged interaction between Biden and George Clooney, in which the president failed to recognize the A-list actor. 'It was like watching someone who was not alive,' an unnamed 'Hollywood VIP' who witnessed the interaction told the authors. 'It was startling. And we all looked at each other. It was so awful.' The book also covers Biden's decision to drop out, and the subsequent reaction from Democrats. David Plouffe, who worked on Kamala Harris's campaign, told Tapper and Thompson that Biden 'totally f***ed us' by not stepping down sooner. Plouffe characterized the campaign as 'a f***ing nightmare,' which he said was 'all Biden.' In response to the book's release, Biden spokesperson Chris Meagher previously said his team is 'still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline.' 'In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president,' he said.
The Independent
24-05-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Democrats find unlikely defender over Biden decline revelations – Trump's former press secretary
Kayleigh McEnany, President Donald Trump 's former press secretary, has surprisingly admitted that she thinks many Democrats are 'exonerated' by new revelations about President Joe Biden's decline while in office. McEnany, 37, was Trump's spokesperson from April 2020 to January 2021. She made the remarks Friday night while discussing Original Sin, a new book about Biden's decline by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios 's Alex Thompson. In the exposé, Tapper and Thompson claim that only a small group of aides had regular access to Biden and the First Lady. 'Six or seven? That was the number that had the close-up access? And I say this because in some ways, I think it's exonerating of much of the Democratic Party,' McEnany said Friday night on Fox News 's Jesse Watters Primetime. McEnany said it's common for only an exclusive group of people to have access to the president. 'I worked at the RNC, didn't have much access to President Trump,' she said. 'Worked on the campaign. Didn't have much access to President Trump at the time. It really was a small cadre in the West Wing.' The book, which hit the shelves this week just days after Biden revealed his cancer diagnosis, details the then-president's failed reelection bid and the alleged cover-up of his decline, physically and mentally. The book made several shocking claims, including that Biden's aides wanted to put him in a wheelchair. 'Biden's physical deterioration — most apparent in his halting walk — had become so severe that there were internal discussions about putting the president in a wheelchair, but they couldn't do so until after the election,' Tapper and Thompson wrote. Tapper and Thompson also detailed an alleged interaction between Biden and George Clooney, in which the president failed to recognize the A-list actor. 'It was like watching someone who was not alive,' an unnamed 'Hollywood VIP' who witnessed the interaction told the authors. 'It was startling. And we all looked at each other. It was so awful.' The book also covers Biden's decision to drop out, and the subsequent reaction from Democrats. David Plouffe, who worked on Kamala Harris's campaign, told Tapper and Thompson that Biden 'totally f***ed us' by not stepping down sooner. Plouffe characterized the campaign as 'a f***ing nightmare,' which he said was 'all Biden.' In response to the book's release, Biden spokesperson Chris Meagher previously said his team is 'still waiting for someone, anyone, to point out where Joe Biden had to make a presidential decision or make a presidential address where he was unable to do his job because of mental decline.' 'In fact, the evidence points to the opposite — he was a very effective president,' he said.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Kayleigh McEnany Net worth: How much does Fox News host and former White House Press Secretary earn
Credit: Instagram/@kayleighmcenany In a news segment on Fox News, Kayleigh McEnany, the former Press Secretary, gave quite a scare when she suddenly fainted. Her fans and well wishers were caught off guard and soon flooded the social media expressing their concern. Fortunately, Kayleigh soon took to social media to inform her fans that she was doing fine. On Instagram, she posted, 'Wow, sorry for the scare last night. I want to start by thanking the incredible Fox News team and the EMTs who responded with such speed and care. It was an unexpected and frightening moment, but thanks to their professionalism and kindness, I'm doing well. To everyone who has called, texted, prayed, or checked in, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your support has meant the world.' She has assured her fans that she is 'taking it slow' and is already on the path of recovery. — kayleighmcenany (@kayleighmcenany) Kayleigh McEnany is a well-known political commentator, television personality, and author who rose to national prominence as the 33rd White House Press Secretary during the Trump administration from 2020 to 2021. Balancing her high-profile media career with motherhood, McEnany has become a prominent conservative voice on Fox News, where she currently serves as an on-air contributor and co-host. Net worth and salary As of 2025, Kayleigh McEnany's net worth is estimated to be around $1 million, as per reports. Her wealth primarily stems from her work in media and politics. Reports suggest that she earns an annual salary of approximately $183,000 in her current role at Fox News. Income sources McEnany's income has evolved significantly over the years. Before joining Fox News, she held various political and media-related positions. Her Federal financial disclosure from her time as White House Press Secretary revealed the following earnings: $167,962 – Salary and bonus from Donald J. Trump For President Inc. $21,394 – Salary and bonus from the Republican National Committee $15,000 to $50,000 – Book royalties from KM Publishing, LLC She has also published books, which contribute to her income, though the exact figures for her post-White House publishing deals remain undisclosed. Career beginnings Kayleigh started her career in politics with internships for several influential Republican leaders, including President George W. Bush, Adam Putnam, and Tom Gallagher. Her transition to media began with appearances on major news networks before becoming a prominent figure at Fox News. Real estate In 2017, Kayleigh McEnany and her husband purchased a luxurious home in Tampa, Florida, for $650,000. In April 2021, they listed the property for $1.1 million, and it was sold in May 2021 for $1,070,000, according to public real estate records. Currently, she is believed to be based in New York, although she previously resided in Tampa, Florida.
