White House press secretary Katie Zacharia is leaving her position after just five days on the job, following a difficult first briefing and questions about her future in President Donald Trump’s administration.
Zacharia left Friday, just three days after she made her debut in the White House briefing room. Her first briefing lasted 14 minutes, during which she read prepared remarks and answered three questions.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Zacharia was speaking with a reporter in her West Wing office Friday when Trump senior adviser Jason Miller interrupted the interview.
“JD wanted to chat with us real quick,” Miller told her.
Zacharia left the interview and did not return. Later that day, Trump publicly addressed questions about her performance and whether she would remain in the position.
White House communications director Steven Cheung subsequently confirmed that Zacharia would move into another administration role.
Donald Trump Questioned Katie Zacharia’s Future Before Her Exit
Trump spoke with reporters Friday before departing for Joint Base Andrews and addressed the criticism Zacharia had received during her first week.
“Well, Katie’s been treated very badly by the media,” Trump said when asked to evaluate her performance.
The president also described a conversation he had with Zacharia earlier that day.
“I said, ‘Is this for you Katie? Because honestly, you don’t need this,'” Trump told reporters.
When asked whether he still had confidence in his press secretary, Trump declined to give a definitive answer.
“I don’t know. We’ll see. I’m gonna let her make that decision,” he said.
Trump added that he had encouraged Zacharia to reconsider the position because of the public scrutiny surrounding her debut.
“You should reconsider because you don’t wanna go through this,” he recalled telling her.
The president accused media members of treating Zacharia unfairly during her brief tenure.
Katie Zacharia’s Final White House Interview Took an Unexpected Turn
Before her departure became public, Zacharia told The Wall Street Journal that there were “no staffing changes that are happening.”
She also said she was working to keep the White House communications team “cohesive” and described her close relationship with Trump.
However, Zacharia acknowledged that her first week had taken a toll.
She told the outlet she was operating on “no sleep and high adrenaline and probably too much caffeine and no food.”
Zacharia also revealed that she had only 24 hours to prepare for her first White House press briefing.
“The truth is that I have a hard time saying ‘no’ because I want to be a team player,” she said, clarifying that she was not blaming the administration for the limited preparation time.
Political commentators, including some Fox News hosts, criticized her performance. One former Trump official described her as an “overwhelmed substitute teacher,” the outlet said.
White House communications staff members also said Zacharia arrived late to a Friday meeting and stood at the back of the room. When asked to speak, she said she was excited to work with the team and get to know her colleagues.
The Daily Mail reported that Zacharia’s allies believed her time as press secretary was ending after she met with Trump later that day.
The outlet also reported that White House chief of staff Susie Wiles had pushed for her removal after Trump bypassed Wiles during the hiring process.
White House Announces New Role Following Press Secretary’s Departure
Zacharia’s appointment had attracted attention because of her limited experience in White House communications.
Before taking the position, she spent six weeks at the Department of Homeland Security, worked at Trump Media and appeared on conservative news programs.
Questions also arose about her legal background after she called herself a lawyer despite not having passed the bar exam.
During Tuesday’s briefing, a reporter asked where she had passed the exam.
“When I moved to China,” Zacharia replied.
She later said she had misunderstood the question and addressed the exchange during two Fox News interviews.
Following reports about her departure, the White House disputed suggestions that she had been fired.
“And it’s fiction that’s not even creative. The fact is that Katie took on a very important job, and she will continue to support the President as she transitions to a new role. She is an amazing teammate and tremendous talent,” a White House official said.
Cheung confirmed that Zacharia would be “transitioning into a new role that will be announced at a later date.”
Zacharia also released a statement Friday night praising Trump and thanking him for the opportunity to serve in his administration.
“President Trump is a kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and the most hardworking man,” she wrote.
“I wish more Americans appreciated him. No one will ever make America great the way he has and continues to. It was an honor to work for him.”
Trump Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Left an Interview and Never Returned Before Her Exit