Saturday, October 17, 2026

Trump Gave WH Spox Zacharia An Out


Katie Zacharia is out as White House press secretary just a week after President Trump appointed her, according to people familiar with the matter.

On Friday, Trump said he had suggested that Zacharia consider leaving the job. “I said, ‘Is this for you Katie? Because honestly, you don’t need this,’” Trump told reporters, adding that she had been treated “very rough” by the media. He said he spoke with her earlier Friday, shortly before his comments to reporters as he left the White House for a rally in Georgia, and counseled her, “Honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider.”

A White House official and a person familiar with the matter confirmed that she is being transitioned out of the role and will not return as press secretary. Zacharia will move to a new position that will be announced later, a person familiar with the plans said.

The exit ends a brief and chaotic run as the administration’s chief spokeswoman. Trump announced her appointment last Friday; her first day was Monday. She came under scrutiny after a shaky debut press briefing Tuesday and faced questions about her claims that she was a lawyer.

Zacharia, who succeeded Karoline Leavitt, entered the role with little government communications experience, though she frequently appeared as a cable news commentator and caught the president’s attention. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that although Zacharia repeatedly referred to herself as a lawyer—and Trump called her an attorney when announcing her appointment—she did not pass the bar exam when she took it in California in 2011 and is not licensed in the U.S.

Zacharia said Friday on Fox News’s “Fox & Friends” that she was not asked whether she had passed the bar before accepting the role. A White House official said she was not hired to work on legal matters.


During her Tuesday briefing-room debut, Zacharia spoke in a stilted cadence while reading a list of Trump’s accomplishments and expressing excitement for the job. She looked down at her notes rather than at the camera, repeated words and paused to find her place. She also faced tough questions Thursday evening on Fox News’s “Hannity” about her briefing performance and professional background. Trump told reporters Friday that he had seen her appearances on both Fox shows.
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