Katie Zacharia has reportedly been removed as White House Press Secretary after only five days in the position. President Donald Trump told reporters Friday that he had advised Zacharia to "reconsider" her role.
"I said to her honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider," Trump stated outside the White House. "Katie, do you need this? I don’t think you need this."
Trump characterized the decision as ultimately Zacharia's, adding that he wanted her "to be happy." He commented that the media had treated Zacharia "pretty nastily" and "very unfairly" since she succeeded Karoline Leavitt. "I said you should reconsider because you don't want to go through this," he said, referencing the critical media response to Zacharia's first press briefing.
The New York Times reported Friday that Zacharia had already been fired.
During a Fox News interview, Sean Hannity asked Zacharia if she had failed the bar exam, to which she responded, "Correct." Zacharia had previously stated she was an attorney. When questioned by a reporter about where she had passed the bar, she initially replied, "when I moved to China," before clarifying that she had misheard the question. Zacharia stated she attended Pepperdine law school.