Katie Zacharias is leaving the White House press secretary after less than five days in the job. A senior administration official told the Daily Mail that she is “stepping down“ from the position after Donald Trump publicly advised her to reconsider staying.
In her first statement since stepping down, Zacharias maintained her support for the president. In an Instagram post, she wrote: “President Trump is a kind, generous, thoughtful, enthusiastic and the hardest working man. I wish more Americans appreciated him. No one will make America great the way he has and continues to do. It was an honor to work for him.“
Trump previously told reporters that he had spoken to Zacharias about her future in the White House. “You don't have to do this if you don't want to. Frankly, if I were you, I would reconsider,“ the president said. He added that the position may not be right for her, but denied that he had directly fired her.
Zacharia's tenure turned out to be shorter than Anthony Scaramucci's 11-day stint as White House communications director in 2017. After her first briefing, she traveled with Trump to Alaska, Arizona and Montana, but did not hold another meeting with journalists.
A source close to Zacharia told the Daily Mail that she was put in an extremely difficult situation and was attacked by political opponents, journalists and White House staff. According to the same source, negative comments from her colleagues were reported to the media.
Zacharia, meanwhile, had planned a dinner with Vice President J.D. Vance and his family. The White House has not yet announced who will take over the press secretary position permanently.
Sources: dailymail.com, apnews.com, video.goodmorningamerica.com