Katie Zacharia has publicly addressed her departure as White House press secretary, using an Instagram message to praise President Donald Trump after leaving the position just five days into the job.
Her statement followed a difficult first week marked by criticism of her debut briefing, questions about her legal background and challenging television interviews.
Despite the circumstances surrounding her exit, Zacharia’s message focused on gratitude toward the president.
“President Trump is a kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and the most hardworking man,” she wrote, according to the Daily Mail.
“I wish more Americans appreciated him. No one will ever make America great the way he has and continues to. It was an honor to work for him.”
Trump had encouraged her to reconsider the role
A senior White House official told the Daily Mail on Friday that Zacharia was “transitioning out” of the press secretary position.
Earlier, Trump told reporters that he had spoken with her about whether she wanted to continue.
“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” he recalled telling her. “Honestly if I were you I’d reconsider.”
Asked whether he would fire Zacharia, Trump responded: “No, I want her to have a good life.”
Before her White House appointment, Zacharia worked in communications for Trump Media, the company behind Truth Social. She also spent approximately six weeks working in communications at the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year.
Her Instagram statement did not address the specific criticisms she faced or explain what she planned to do next.
A source close to Zacharia criticizes internal treatment
While Zacharia publicly praised Trump, a person close to her offered a more critical account of how others had treated her during her brief tenure.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, the source argued that she had entered an exceptionally difficult situation and faced hostility from across the political and media landscape.
The person also accused colleagues of undermining her through negative messages to journalists rather than helping her succeed.
“Instead of focusing on how to help her succeed, colleagues spent their time texting negative tear downs to the media,” the source said.
The insider described Zacharia as intelligent, driven and kind, arguing that the experience exposed damaging divisions within the Republican political system ahead of the midterm elections.
Those comments represented the source’s assessment of her treatment, rather than an explanation offered by Zacharia in her own statement.
Briefing and legal questions overshadowed her first week
Zacharia’s Tuesday debut briefing lasted 14 minutes, with questions taken from three reporters. According to the Daily Mail, Karoline Leavitt’s briefings had averaged approximately 45 minutes.
Questions about Zacharia’s professional background soon became another focus.
A Pepperdine University law graduate, she had described herself as a lawyer during television appearances. During her first briefing, her answer to a question about where she passed the bar appeared to suggest she had done so after moving to China.
She later told The New York Times that noise from Marine One had prevented her from properly hearing the question.
During a Thursday interview with Sean Hannity, Zacharia acknowledged failing the California bar examination in 2011 and never retaking it.
Hannity subsequently said he had expected her to use the interview to resolve the controversy and had anticipated a different answer.
Zacharia had promised during that appearance to improve her preparation. Following her departure, however, her first public message centered on appreciation for Trump and the opportunity to serve him.
