Karoline Leavitt will step down as White House Press Secretary at the end of the month, a move announced by President Donald Trump via a social media post. Trump stated that Leavitt is leaving to spend more time with her family and will serve as one of his top outside advisors and an influential voice within the Republican Party.
Leavitt, who has been in the role for approximately 18 months, has developed a reputation for direct and at times contentious interactions with journalists, mirroring President Trump's own relationship with the press.
In her own statement, Leavitt described the press secretary position as "the honor and adventure of a lifetime" and expressed gratitude to the President for the opportunity to speak on his behalf at the White House podium. She added that she "relished holding the liberal media accountable and ensuring the American people hear the truth about President Trump’s successes."
During her tenure, Leavitt engaged in several notable exchanges with reporters. In March 2025, she had a heated discussion with an Associated Press reporter regarding tariffs, asserting they were a tax cut for Americans. When the reporter questioned her understanding, Leavitt stated, "I now regret giving a question to The Associated Press."
In June 2025, when asked by a NOTUS reporter to clarify President Trump's stance on protests, Leavitt responded to a question about potential protests during an upcoming military parade by calling it a "stupid question" after affirming Trump's support for peaceful First Amendment demonstrations but not violence.
In February, a press briefing was abruptly ended after a reporter inquired about Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's past statements regarding Jeffrey Epstein. Leavitt defended Lutnick, stated Trump "fully supports" him, and criticized the press for focusing on the matter rather than other administration achievements before leaving the podium.
Earlier in January, following the death of Renee Nicole Good by a federal immigration agent, The Hill columnist Niall Stanage questioned ICE's tactics, citing statistics on detainee deaths and referencing Good's case. Leavitt responded by calling Stanage a "biased reporter with a leftwing opinion" and a "leftwing hack," accusing him of posing as a journalist and being an activist rather than reporting facts.
In another instance in March 2025, when CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins asked if there was evidence for a claim about presidential pardons being signed by an autopen without knowledge, Leavitt replied, "You’re a reporter—you should find out." Leavitt also previously declined to take a follow-up question from Collins, stating, "Kaitlan, I’m not taking your follow-up."