Katie Zacharia dismissed as White House press secretary after scrutiny over legal credentials

Washington, United States. Katie Zacharia was dismissed as White House Press Secretary on Friday, according to a White House official, after President Donald Trump said he had encouraged her to reconsider the position amid public scrutiny.

Questions over legal credentials

Scrutiny during the past week focused on whether Zacharia, who graduated from the law school at California’s Pepperdine University, had passed the bar and qualified as an attorney. Trump had identified her as an attorney when announcing her appointment.

In an admission reported on Friday, Zacharia said during a Thursday interview with Fox News that she had not passed the bar.

Trump urged reconsideration

Speaking to reporters as he left the White House, Trump said he had told Zacharia that her happiness mattered and that he doubted she could be happy in the role. He described the work as difficult.

Trump also said he had candidly advised her to think about the position again, explaining that he would reconsider it if he were in her place.

Fox News subsequently reported, citing a White House official, that Zacharia was moving out of the press secretary position.

A brief tenure

Zacharia began work on Monday and conducted her first briefing at the White House on Tuesday. She had said she was contacted about the position the previous Wednesday and received an offer the previous Friday to replace Karoline Leavitt. Trump announced the appointment afterwards.

Anthony Scaramucci held the director of communications position for ten days during Trump’s first administration.