New White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia steps down

White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia resigned after only a few days on the job, according to a senior administration official. The official did not disclose the reason for her decision to leave. It remains unclear who will replace her. In a post on X, Zacharia expressed gratitude for her time working for President Donald Trump.

Earlier in the week, Trump suggested that she might not last long in the role. He reportedly told reporters that she should reconsider given the poor treatment she had received from the media. However, some US media outlets claimed that Trump had actually fired her. CBS News reported, based on an unnamed source, that Zacharia had been isolated for the entire week and was not functioning effectively as press secretary.

Politico stated that Trump privately criticized Zacharia, alleging she lacked talent and should not appear on television. Her short and poorly received press conference on Tuesday quickly drew criticism, and she later admitted to failing a bar exam. Zacharia's appointment as the new press secretary was announced on Friday last week, taking over from Karoline Leavitt.

She began the role on Monday and delivered her first press conference on Tuesday. Despite being widely seen as a failure, the White House website later claimed that Zacharia had delivered a "commanding inaugural press briefing." Some of her remarks also caused controversy abroad, including China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning inviting her to visit after she said China lacked proper toilets. By Thursday, Zacharia admitted she had failed her bar exam and had not re-taken it.