President Donald Trump made the startling admission Friday that he told his newly appointed White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia, to reconsider her job following her rocky debut as the president’s spokesperson.
“Katie is off to a start that the news has been so nasty, I’ve never seen anything like it,” Trump told reporters Friday at the White House. “I said to her, ‘Honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider — you think about it, but I would reconsider.’”
A reporter could be heard shouting, “What do you want her to do?”
“I just want her to be happy,” Trump answered.
Zacharia’s debut this week was marked by verbal slip-ups and a gaze fixated on her notes during her first White House press briefing. Her performance was even scrutinized by right-wing figures, including the hosts of Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” and Sean Hannity.
“I said, ‘Is this for you, Katie, because honestly, you don’t need this, you don’t have to be treated that bad.’ I would say the fake news has been very rough,” Trump said.
“She was on Sean Hannity last night and Sean was a little bit tough. She’s been treated, I would say, pretty nastily. I said to Katie just two minutes ago, I said, ‘Katie, you know, you don’t have to do this if you don’t want.’ She said, ‘This is a lot tougher.’ I said, ‘Welcome to the world of Trump!’”
ZACHARIA IS ON THE WAY OUT ALREADY 👇Q: Would you have liked to have known that Katie Zacharia didn't pass the bar?TRUMP: Katie has been treated very badly by the media. Very very badly. Very unfair. I just asked her, is this for you? And she's a nice person. I'm going to let her make that decision. Sean Hannity was a little bit tough. Katie is off to a start that, the news has been so nasty to her. I told her, 'Honestly, if I were you, I would reconsider.' Maybe it's not for her
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 16, 2026