White House press secretary Katie Zacharia’s disastrous five-day tenure may have ended with a little help from Donald Trump’s chief of staff.
In a one-on-one with Fox News’ Sean Hannity on Thursday, Zacharia tried to salvage her already floundering White House career. Instead, the interview may have helped seal her fate. She was axed less than 24 hours later.
The interview was reportedly partly arranged by White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, who was said to be unhappy with Zacharia’s appointment from the start, Politico reported.
A source went further, describing the interview as a “sanctioned hit” orchestrated by Wiles, suggesting the disastrous appearance may have been more than a coincidence.
“[White House spokesperson] Danielle [Alvarez] and Susie fed her to Hannity,” a source close to the situation told Politico.
Zacharia held her first press briefing Tuesday morning, just days after President Trump, 80, made the surprise announcement that she would replace Karoline Leavitt, who stepped down from her role in late August.
The news, first posted to Trump’s Truth Social, reportedly caught many in the White House off guard.
But by the end of her first briefing, during which she appeared to read from a script and mixed up the president and her husband, Zacharia was under pressure to do better.
Zacharia’s unraveling took just four days, with journalists uncovering her history of shilling for a “sort of pyramid scheme” and her years of appearing on right-wing news programs as a legal analyst despite never having passed the bar exam.
The interview with Hannity, traditionally a safe space for MAGA-affiliated figures, got off to a rocky start—and only grew more uncomfortable.
Hannity began by saying Zacharia’s first (and only) briefing had “been widely panned, I’m sure you’re aware,” as she smiled broadly and nodded.
A senior White House official told Politico that while “Susie and Sean do talk,” Wiles was not responsible for Zacharia’s poor performance on the program.
“Susie did not need to feed her to Sean or anybody else. It’s not her style,” the official said.
White House communications director Steven Cheung told Politico that its reporting on Wiles’ involvement was “speculation.”
“All of this breathless speculation is just that—speculation. And it’s fiction that’s not even creative,” Cheung said.
“Katie took on a very important job, and she will continue to support the president as she transitions to a new role. She is an amazing teammate and tremendous talent.”
A White House official told the Daily Beast that “Susie had nothing to do with the interview.”
A Fox News spokesman also dismissed the suggestion that Wiles had helped set up the interview.
“Sean Hannity decides who he interviews and what he asks his guests, period,” he said. “Susie Wiles and Danielle Alvarez had nothing to do with the booking.”
