Just a few days ago, Donald Trump appointed a new White House press secretary, Katie Zachary, but since then there has been much debate surrounding her past and her manner of dealing with journalists.
The political career of 42-year-old Katie Zachary began back in 2006, when she was an intern at the Republican National Committee and the White House during the George W. Bush administration. In recent years, she has gained prominence as a commentator on the conservative television channels Newsmax and Fox News.
Before moving to the White House, Zacharia was in charge of communications at Donald Trump’s media company, Trump Media & Technology Group.
She had previously worked for a time as a press secretary at the US Department of Homeland Security, but resigned, stating that the constant flights between California and According to the columnist, Zacharia often read from prepared notes, reacted uncertainly to the audience and made strange pauses.
During the press conference, a Fox News correspondent asked whether the US was continuing to share intelligence with Ukraine. Zacharia replied that she would provide further details later.
At the end of the briefing, a Daily Mail journalist asked how she would balance her new job with family life, given that her husband and four children were still in California. In response, Zakaria slipped up; instead of saying ‘husband’, she initially said ‘my president’, before immediately correcting herself, which drew laughter from the audience.
President Trump is the most family-friendly president we have ever had. He appointed mostly women who had families; and the fact that he was aware of
White House Communications Director Stephen Chang said that Zacharia “possesses exceptional qualifications and a sharp mind that will help keep Americans informed”.
President Donald Trump, announcing her appointment last week, described Zacharia as a lawyer. She described herself as a lawyer.
Responding to a question this week about her qualifications, Katie Zacharia stated: “I practised international treaty law and had all the necessary documentation for that.”
On Wednesday, the Campaign for Accountability lodged a complaint with the California State Bar.
They allege that Zacharia has been passing herself off as someone authorised to practise law without a licence, which is a criminal offence under Californian law.
A person with direct knowledge of the case told the publication that Zakaria sat the exam around the time she was preparing for her wedding and moving to China with her future husband.
Photo: Getty Images
Zacharia moved to Beijing because of her husband’s job at an American private equity firm. Zacharia claims she worked there in the field of ‘international contract law’.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she worked as a junior lawyer at the Beijing-based law firm Zhong Lun between 2011 and 2013.
In China, only Chinese nationals can obtain a licence to practise law. Foreigners may work in law firms in other roles.
Last February, Zakaria stated on the conservative radio programme *The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show* that under
In particular, *The Telegraph* highlighted that in March 2022, Zakaria shared a post expressing support for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The repost claimed that ‘Putin is waging war against the cabal, and Ukraine is acting in concert with it’.
By ‘the cabal’, the authors of the post meant an alleged secret alliance of representatives of the global elite. The post contained images of a number of well-known politicians and public figures, including Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Joe Biden and George Soros.
Journalists also drew attention to other posts by Zakari from 2022, in which she shared material linked to the Pizzagate conspiracy theory. Her supporters make unsubstantiated claims that members of the Democratic Party are allegedly involved in a child sex exploitation ring.
According to media reports, former White House press secretary Caroline Levitt, who left her post in August, has joined Fox News.
She previously worked on my election campaigns, helping out in key swing states. We won all seven of them,” Trump wrote about Zacharia on Truth Social.
“I am confident that Katie will achieve significant results for our country as White House press secretary, because she is respected by the media, the American people and my administration, and she will work very well with them,” he added.
Zacharia thanked the President in a post on the X platform:
“It is the honour of my life to serve President Trump and the American people at this important moment, as the country celebrates its 250th anniversary.”
She stated that
Justin Buchler, a professor of political science at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, told the BBC that Trump’s appointments during his second term are based primarily on personal loyalty.
“He values loyalty above all else,” said Buchler.