Katie Zacharia will no longer serve as US president Donald Trump’s press secretary after spending less than a week on the job, thrusting the White House’s communications operation back into a state of chaos.
Zacharia was out of the role as of Friday, according to people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity to describe the decision before it was public. It is unclear if she will take another position in the White House or in Trump’s orbit.
Trump told reporters on Friday that he encouraged her to “reconsider” her position.
“I said to her, ‘honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider,’” the president told reporters at the White House.
READ MORE
Zacharia’s tenure was rocky from the start. Her first and only press briefing was widely panned, as she spoke slowly and haltingly from prepared remarks and took questions from only three reporters.
She also faced a plethora of questions about whether she misrepresented herself as a lawyer, despite not passing the bar exam. Trump also called her “an attorney” in his social media post announcing her hiring.
Zacharia’s rapid rise and fall was remarkable, even by the standards of Trump’s White House. It hearkened back to Trump’s first term, when his staff was marked by constant turnover and turmoil. Then, White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci was fired after just 11 days in the role.
Zacharia’s efforts to defend herself also did not go smoothly. She faced tough questions about her legal background in a pair of interviews with Fox News, which is typically friendly to the administration.
In another sit-down with a conservative commentator, Zacharia made a disparaging comment about China lacking “proper toilets”.
The US president blamed what he described as unfair treatment from the news media for her troubles but still suggested the job might not be for her.
“I told her, I think you’re better off being happy and I’m not sure you can ever be happy in this job,” he said. “I said, Katie, ‘do you need this? I don’t think you need this.’”
When asked if he would force her out of the role, Trump replied that he is “talking about doing something” but that “I’m going to let her make that decision.”
The turmoil is taking place just over two weeks before the November midterm elections, in which Republicans are struggling to convince sceptical voters to stick with them amid their frustrations over the cost of living.
With Zacharia out, Trump is again left without a White House press secretary, an official who traditionally amplifies the president’s message in the news media.
Zacharia replaced Karoline Leavitt, a long-time Trump adviser who left as press secretary in August. It is unclear who will fill the role, or when that person would be appointed. – Bloomberg
[ Trump's new press secretary faces mounting questions over her legal credentialsOpens in new window ]
