Katie Zacharia Out As White House Press Secretary—Days After Flubbed Briefing
White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia has reportedly been ousted from her role, just days after she gave a clumsy first press briefing and amid questions about her credentials .
Zacharia was fired Friday, according to multiple reports .
Trump suggested to reporters Friday that Zacharia should reconsider her role, citing “nasty” treatment from the media.
“Maybe it’s not for her,” Trump added, saying he wanted Zacharia to be happy and that she “has suffered over the last few days.”
Zacharia gave a gaffe-filled press briefing Tuesday after replacing former press secretary Karoline Leavitt, including one in which she mistakenly said, “my president... excuse me, my husband,” when referring to her husband Tyler Zacharia, a film producer.
When asked if she still had Trump’s confidence, Zacharia told “Fox & Friends” hosts Friday morning, “I’m standing here, and I was able to travel with him... and I hope to be able to build the trust and confidence of everyone around me.”
Anthony Scaramucci, who lasted as the White House communications director for just 11 days during Trump’s first term, said in a post Friday, “Records are made to be broken. But I take no pleasure in other people’s pain.”
Zachariah replaced Leavitt after the former press secretary stepped away from the position following the birth of her second child. Zacharia blamed her flubbed press briefing on a lack of preparation time and materials, saying she was given the finalized briefing book less than two hours before the event. Zacharia also faced scrutiny this week over legal credentials after telling reporters she passed the bar in China, where foreign nationals cannot take the test. She later admitted she was never a licensed attorney despite referring to herself as a lawyer in media interviews for years. She told Fox the White House never asked her if she passed the bar exam, saying, “I’m being hired as White House press secretary, not White House counsel.”
Katie Zacharia Says White House Never Asked If She’d Passed Bar Exam (Forbes)