Katie Zacharia has spoken about her brief stint as the White House press secretary and revealed the biggest lesson she learnt in her time at the Oval Office. She was abruptly fired on October 16, five days after she joined as the press secretary.
In a chat with Joel Pollak, the Opinion editor of The California Post, Zacharia revealed if she regretted saying yes to working in Washington.
The Biggest Lesson Katie Zacharia Learnt
Katie Zacharia said that refusing to be defined by her critics was one of the biggest things she took away from her experience.
“The biggest lessons are to stay true to your character, focus on the work in front of you, and refuse to be defined by the critics.”
“My own advice: My first boss in politics told me that the trick to getting through a political scandal was — to get through it,” she added.
Zacharia rejected the claim that she was put in a tough position by the Trump administration during her tenure.
When asked if she had any regrets, the former secretary said she was proud that she stood “firm” in what she believed. She was also happy to have kept supporting Trump “even when the circumstances weren’t ideal” personally.
Zacharia added that she was proud to have shown her kids “what courage looks like in the face of criticism.”
Katie Zacharia’s Brief White House Tenure
Zacharia became the shortest-serving member of Trump’s two administrations after her exit on Friday. She was announced as Karoline Leavitt’s successor after Trump was impressed by her appearances on conservative media, where she defended his policies.
The president reportedly hired Zacharia without consulting White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
Zacharia’s first briefing saw her stumbling while reading out a prepared statement, and accidentally referring to her husband as “my president.”
Later, questions were raised on her credentials and whether she had passed the bar exam and could call herself an attorney.
She also revealed on Fox News that she had not passed the bar exam, an admission which served as fuel for critics.
The White House is now looking for a new press secretary with the midterms fast approaching.
Conservative CNN commentator Scott Jennings, former Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo, and staffers Margo Martin and Anna Kelly are reportedly among the candidates under consideration.