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President Donald Trump’s new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia, has been eviscerated online after battling the nerves in her briefing room debut - which lasted just minutes.
Zacharia began by reading prepared remarks to the press, touting Trump and his administration’s purported successes. She took questions from three reporters from right-wing outlets Breitbart, Fox News, and the Daily Mail, before she pulled the plug after 14 minutes.
She was unable to answer a question about whether the U.S. has halted sharing intelligence with Ukraine, telling Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy that she would “get back to [him] on that.” And she fumbled toward the end of the briefing when she mistakenly said, “my president” when she meant to say “my husband.”
While the White House and MAGA influencers defended Zacharia, social media was flooded with comments criticizing the conservative activist’s performance.
“Katie Zacharia makes Karoline Leavitt seem like Winston Churchill,” commented journalist Aaron Rupar, who shared several clips of Zacharia on X.
“Is this a hostage video?” someone else quipped.
“This isn't going well,” the Lincoln Project group posted, while another said, “Bro at least karoline had good communication skills,” with a laughing emoji.
Another joked that Saturday Night Live needn’t run a cold open this week and should “just play this as is” instead. Another person joked, “the new press secretary is just reading off a notepad that says "trump is strong, kind, smart and never sleepy :).”
Others referred to ex-White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci, who held the role for a record for shortest stint lasting just 10 days in 2017 during Trump’s first term.
“She may not make it a full Scaramucci…” someone posted.
Even a White House official chimed in. “Getting behind the podium is tough, but she got off on the wrong foot. She needs to get much better, fast, otherwise she'll break Scaramucci's record,” the official told MSNOW.
Communications director Steven Cheung had kinder words for Zacharia, praising her for a “tremendous start.”
“She commanded the room and effectively reminded the American people of all the great work President Trump and his Administration has done thus far,” Cheung reacted on X.
NewsNation’s Hannah Brandt said there was an “audible surprise” in the room when Zacharia closed the briefing after less than 15 minutes, the reporter said on X.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, who regularly sparred with Zacharia’s predecessor in the briefing room, said questions lasted only five and a half minutes. But some MAGA figures leaped to Zacharia’s defense.
“Libs hate conservative women,” said right-wing influencer Jack Posobiec. “They make them uncomfortable.”
Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet said that Zacharia got off to a “solid start” but acknowledged her nerves in a post on X.
“Thought it was smart of new WH Press Sec Katie Zacharia to rip the band-aid and hold her first press briefing straight away. She came off perhaps a bit nervous reading the prepared statement, but very relatable and likeable,” he said. “She lit up when talking when about her family.”
Other MAGA-leaning accounts commented that Zacharia “has big shoes to fill” after Leavitt, the youngest person to have ever held the role, left over the summer.
The California native is Trump’s sixth press secretary. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, from Trump’s first administration, served the longest in the role and almost made it to two years. Leavitt was in the role for one year and six months, making her the second longest-serving Trump press secretary.