Trump picks Katie Zacharia as next White House press secretary

Washington — Conservative commentator Katie Zacharia has been offered the role of White House press secretary, a White House official told CBS News on Friday. 

The White House did not confirm whether she has accepted the offer. Zacharia briefly worked for the Department of Homeland Security as a spokesperson earlier this year, and currently works as a senior communications adviser for Truth Social, the president’s social media site, according to her LinkedIn profile. She frequently appears on Fox News and Newsmax. 

The position has been vacant since Karoline Leavitt left in late August. The New York Times was first to report that Zacharia was offered the role. Zacharia has not yet publicly commented.

Zacharia, who lives in California, completed her undergraduate and law degrees at Pepperdine University in Malibu, according to her LinkedIn. 

Earlier this year, Zacharia wrote an op-ed for the New York Post about her experience wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat to her local gym. She said the owner of the gym ultimately asked her to stop wearing it. 

“I responded that I would never take my Trump hat off to appease the left,” she wrote. “This is raw, unfiltered intolerance. Freedom of speech doesn’t evaporate at the gym door. 

“The First Amendment has no ‘discomfort’ clause,” she added, although the First Amendment protects against government government censorship of speech, not private businesses.

The White House James S. Brady Press Briefing Room hasn’t hosted a briefing for the press since Sept. 3, when Vice President JD Vance addressed reporters and took questions.