DOMINANT ANGLE
The United States capital sees this episode as a symptom of internal disorder eighteen days before the midterm elections: five days, a record, and a spokesperson position assigned without preparation.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
KEY POINTS
- 01
Five days in office, compared to less than 11 for Anthony Scaramucci in 2017 (CNBC, Axios); a single press briefing, 14 minutes long and three questions.
- 02
Zacharia admitted to Sean Hannity that she had failed the bar exam; the Campaign for Accountability has contacted the California bar.
- 03
Trump says he advised her to "reconsider", believing the press had treated her "very unfairly" (Time, Axios).
ANALYSIS
The United States government is facing a new development in its administration, as Katie Zacharia left her post as White House spokesperson on Friday after just five days, according to CNBC, Axios, and Time. Axios, citing two high-ranking administration officials, describes it as a dismissal; a official cited by CNBC calls it a "transition". Donald Trump, speaking to the press before heading to Georgia, said he suggested she "reconsider": "Katie, is this for you?". He believes "the news has been so nasty to her".
The record is the common thread. CNBC recalls that Anthony Scaramucci's tenure in 2017 lasted less than 11 days and that the term "a Scaramucci" has remained in Washington jargon: Zacharia lasted "half a Scaramucci". The latter wrote on X: "Records are made to be broken. But I take no pleasure in other people's pain". Axios specifies that she took office on Monday, October 12, and held her only press conference the next day.
The press conference on Tuesday, October 13, lasting 14 minutes and three questions, is described by Axios as "shaky and nervous", and an official claims it left the president unimpressed. Questioned on Fox News on Thursday, Zacharia said she did her best with "very little prep time" and disputed the idea that only conservative media outlets were asked questions.
The controversy over her title is just as significant. When asked about the state where she passed the bar, she replied "when I moved to China", then said she had misheard due to the noise from Marine One. Speaking to Sean Hannity on Thursday, she admitted she had not passed the exam. According to Axios, Trump was "blindsided": he had introduced her as "attorney" on Truth Social. The Campaign for Accountability, which filed a complaint with the California bar, believes her departure "does not wipe clean" the case.
Comments are divided on responsibility. Former Bill Clinton spokesperson Joe Lockhart, on CNN, said she was "set up to fail" and "a victim". The Atlantic sees it as a return to the "hapless chaos" of the first term, as chief of staff Susie Wiles' machine "sputters" ahead of the midterms. Laura Loomer has applied for the position while judging the criticism "unnecessarily cruel".
SOURCES (6)
- CNBCMEDIUM
- TimeMEDIUM
- AxiosMEDIUM
- The AtlanticMEDIUM
- The HillMEDIUM
