Katie Zacharia Out as White House Press Secretary After Less Than a Week

Katie Zacharia has been ousted as White House press secretary, concluding a tenure of less than one week. Her departure follows a tumultuous series of events, beginning with a widely criticized first press briefing and escalating concerns over her qualifications.

Zacharia's final 72 hours in the role were marked by attempts to salvage her position following a rocky debut. On Tuesday, her first press briefing was described as stumbling and nervous. She faced pointed questions from the White House press corps, including one from Peter Doocy of Fox News regarding U.S. intelligence sharing with Ukraine, a question she stated she could not answer. Later in the briefing, she revealed that President Trump had asked for the resignation of U.S. Ambassador to Greece, Kimberly Guilfoyle, a statement that reportedly caught many by surprise.

The controversy intensified when reporters questioned Zacharia's claim to be a lawyer and general counsel. During a press gaggle outside the White House, a reporter asked President Trump where Zacharia had passed the bar exam. Zacharia responded cryptically, "When I moved to China." She later told The New York Times that she had misheard the question. An investigation by journalists confirmed that Zacharia had not passed the bar exam in any state, failing the California exam in 2011 and never retaking it.

Zacharia herself acknowledged the rapid ascent to the press secretary role, telling host Jack Posobiec on Real America's Voice that she was in a pumpkin patch in California when President Trump called, leading to a swift move to Washington. She stated that briefing materials were not finalized until 8 a.m. on the day of her 9:30 a.m. briefing, which was moved up due to the President's travel schedule.

During an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News, Zacharia reiterated that the controversy over her legal credentials was a "miscommunication" and that she had earned a law degree and consulted with others about using the title "lawyer" for legal analysis, not advice. She explained her failure to pass the bar exam by stating that after graduating and getting married, she was planning to move to China, making the exam results "inconsequential." Hannity presented evidence of her identifying herself as an "attorney" at least 15 times on social media, to which Zacharia responded that these were retweets of titles given to her.

On Friday morning, during an appearance on Fox & Friends, Zacharia was asked if she had the president's confidence. She expressed hope to build trust but also stated, when pushed on whether she should have clarified her legal qualifications, "Those questions weren't asked. I'm being hired as White House press secretary, not White House counsel." Shortly after, President Trump commented to reporters that "maybe it's not for her" and that he had told Zacharia "you're better off being happy."

Sources indicated that Zacharia's hiring was President Trump's decision, with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles reportedly not involved in her selection. The White House later confirmed she would be "transitioning" out of the role.