Katie Zacharia's brutal exit as President Donald Trump's press secretary didn't happen by accident, insiders say, pointing to a powerful figure pulling the strings.
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles orchestrated the ouster of Zacharia, who lasted just five days on the job, The Daily Mail reported Friday. Wiles had reportedly been bypassed when the president plucked Zacharia, a 41-year-old former communications adviser at his media company, from relative obscurity last week.
One senior Trump administration official told The Daily Mail that "Susie gave Fox News the kill order," while adding that Zacharia "was an obviously bad choice."
That order, according to the report, set the stage for a live Thursday night interview in which Sean Hannity, whom Zacharia considered an ally, grilled her over her shaky debut briefing and her legal credentials. Trump had called her an attorney, but she never passed the bar exam. Zacharia told Hannity the result was "inconsequential" because she knew she would be living in China.
The pressure continued Friday morning on "Fox & Friends," where co-host Lawrence Jones opened by asking whether she wished she had told the president about the bar exam.
A second senior Trump official told The Daily Mail that someone at the White House "set her up," adding, "It only could have been Susie or the president himself."
Fox News insiders rejected the "kill order" account, arguing Zacharia had sunk herself by the end of the Hannity segment. Zacharia did not respond to the outlet's requests for comment.
White House communications director Steven Cheung announced Friday that Zacharia would move into a new role to be named later. Only days earlier, Cheung had brushed off reports of internal doubts about her as "trash."
Trump, who hailed her first briefing as "excellent" on Tuesday, struck a gentle tone with reporters after their Friday meeting.
"I want her to have a good life," he said.
Behind closed doors, however, Politico reported that Trump told officials she "had no talent and shouldn't be on television."
Wiles is now reportedly circling back to Scott Jennings, the Trump-friendly CNN contributor she favored before Zacharia was picked to replace Karoline Leavitt, who stepped down in August. A former Trump official confirmed to the outlet that Jennings is the frontrunner. Jennings did not comment.