Following her departure after just five days in the role of White House press secretary, Zacharia posted on social media describing Trump in broadly flattering terms — calling him kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and hardworking — and stated that the experience of serving in his administration had been an honour, that she wished a greater portion of the American public viewed him as she did, and that no one else would ever restore the country in the way he had and continued to do.
The post from Zacharia arrived on the heels of Friday reports in US outlets indicating she had stepped away from the press secretary role. A network broadcast attributed the news of her removal to individuals described as being within Trump's inner circle of advisers. One broadcast outlet reported at the time that a person in a senior administration post had described her departure as a move into a different position, with a formal announcement still to come.
The announcement of her departure came within hours of Trump addressing reporters on the White House South Lawn, where he described a conversation he had held with her about whether she wished to remain in the position, noting that he viewed coverage of her as unfair and that he had told her the choice to stay or leave was hers to make. Trump recalled that Zacharia had mentioned finding the role far more taxing than anticipated, and said his response touched on the nature of working in that environment, leaving the decision to stay or go with her. A news outlet later reported that her departure had not been voluntary.
On Monday, 12 October, Zacharia — who had previously served as a senior communications adviser at Trump Media & Technology Group and built a profile as a conservative commentator — stepped into the role, conducting her first press briefing the next morning. Her appointment had been disclosed by Trump on October 8, filling the vacancy left when Karoline Leavitt departed at the close of August.
The session wrapped up in under a quarter of an hour. At the same briefing, she told those present that Trump had requested Kimberly Guilfoyle's departure from her post as US ambassador to Greece, while leaving open the question of whether intelligence-sharing with Ukraine remained active. Questions about her legal standing arose after Trump referred to her as an attorney. On Thursday, a broadcast outlet relayed word from a senior administration official that she had not passed the California bar exam.
As of the time of reporting, no replacement had been put forward, with one broadcast outlet indicating that an appointment was not expected in the near term. At five days, the duration of Zacharia's time in the press secretary role at the White House stands as what records indicate may be the briefest on record for that post.
