Trump asks Katie Zacharia to reconsider if she wants the press secretary position

President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that he asked White House press secretary Katie Zacharia to reconsider whether she wants to remain in her position. Speaking on the White House lawn, Trump stated he told Zacharia, "Do you need this?" and suggested she might be better off being happy, noting that he felt she had been "brutalized" and treated unfairly by the media. The president indicated he would make a final determination regarding her role after his campaign travel.

Zacharia's tenure began on October 9, and she faced scrutiny following a widely panned first briefing on Tuesday and admissions that she did not pass the bar exam. While The Guardian US reported that Zacharia was fired on Friday, just five days after assuming the role, Fox News reported she was “transitioning out” of the position. The New York Times also reported that Zacharia had been fired.

Brief written by urgent.news from ABC News (US), The Guardian US, PBS NewsHour, CBS News, Winnipeg Free Press — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.