First posted on Instagram · @profilopolitics
The offer went out today, and a White House official confirmed it on condition of anonymity: Katie Zacharia — Republican attorney, frequent Fox News guest, former Homeland Security spokesperson, and now a senior communications adviser at Trump Media — has been asked to become the next White House press secretary. The New York Times first reported the pick. She has not publicly accepted yet, and the White House has made no formal announcement.
What makes the pick striking is who Trump passed over to make it. The frontrunner for the job was Scott Jennings, the CNN conservative commentator. Politico's Dasha Burns reported Jennings was "making a push" for the role and had met with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. The prediction markets had him as the clear favorite — around 31 percent on Kalshi and 18 percent on Polymarket. When a reporter asked Trump about Jennings at Joint Base Andrews, the president answered immediately: "Scott Jennings is good." But NOTUS reported Trump "isn't totally sold" on him. In the end, the favorite lost to the dark horse.
That is a pattern with Trump, and people who study him saw it coming. Back in August, George Washington University professor Todd Belt put it this way: "Donald Trump really likes to find someone new on things... the odds-on favorite for me is a dark horse candidate." Zacharia is exactly that — not the name on every short list, but the one Trump actually wanted.
So who is she? Zacharia, 41, earned her law degree from Pepperdine's Caruso School of Law in 2011. Her Republican résumé goes back to college: she interned for the Republican National Committee and worked in the White House Office of Political Affairs during George W. Bush's second term. She later practiced corporate law internationally, including a stint in Beijing, before moving into conservative advocacy as a legal adviser to Fix California, the organization led by Richard Grenell.
In February 2026 she became Deputy Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Public Affairs — the department's top spokesperson — and held the post for about six weeks before resigning in March, citing the strain of the California-to-Washington commute as a mother of four. She has been a Newsmax regular since 2024 and a Fox News commentator since 2025, and her LinkedIn profile lists her current role as a communications adviser at Trump Media and Technology Group. She is, in other words, already inside Trump's orbit.
That is the core of why he picked her. Zacharia has spent the last two years as one of his most ardent on-air defenders, arguing his case on cable news night after night — including a New York Post op-ed praising his leadership on immigration during her DHS tenure. She brings a lawyer's precision to the briefing room, a television commentator's instincts, and a loyalty that was forged in his own media company rather than rented from a green room. Belt described what Trump looks for in the role: "Determination to stay on message and hit back hard... And to look good doing it." Zacharia checks every box.
The seat has sat vacant since Karoline Leavitt departed at the end of August. Whether Zacharia accepts, and when the White House makes it official, is the next thing to watch.