Sean Spicer, Donald Trump’s first White House press secretary, has warned the US President against focusing on looks while choosing someone to replace Katie Zacharia, who lasted five days in the job.

Zacharia previously served as a senior communications adviser for Trump’s Truth Social platform. She was appointed to replace Karoline Leavitt, who left the position at the end of August to spend time with her family.

Spicer said Trump should consider the skills needed for the role instead of focusing only on a person’s support for his policies.

During an interview with Australian outlet News24, journalist Andrew Bolt asked Spicer whether Trump chose people who looked pretty and agreed with him instead of people who were competent at the job.

Spicer defended Zacharia and said she “does a great job of fighting for the America First agenda”. However, he said that looks and loyalty were only “about 20 percent” of the job. “I caution the White House and the president, in particular, for just focusing on that part of the duties,” Spicer said.

He also pointed to other responsibilities, including handling the “logistical nature of dealing with the media”. He said candidates should understand what the job required before accepting it. They should also be aware of their own strengths and weaknesses.

“If you’re telling me that you don’t have a real fundamental grasp of how the government operates, you’ve never worked at the press corps—then this might not be the best fit for you,” Spicer said.

Zacharia’s five-day stint as press secretary drew attention after her first press briefing was cut short. During the briefing, she read from a piece of paper and accidentally called her husband “my president”. 

Spicer resigned as Trump’s press secretary in July 2017 after six months in the role. In an interview in August, he described it as the most demanding job he had ever held, despite having spent 27 years in the military.

“That is the most intense job I will ever ever have,” he said.