Trump’s press secretary fired after 5 days and one briefing

President Donald Trump has urged Katie Zacharia, his new White House press secretary, to “reconsider” taking the job after she faced intense scrutiny from news outlets. Speaking with reporters outside the White House on Friday, the US president said Zacharia had been “treated very badly by the media” after she stumbled through a 14-minute press conference on Tuesday and questions arose over her legal credentials. “I said, ‘Is this for you, Katie? Because honestly, you don’t need it,’” Trump recalled to reporters. “I said to her, ‘Honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider. You think about it, but I would reconsider.”
During an appearance on the rightwing Fox News network earlier on Friday morning – her fifth day as Trump’s chief spokesperson – Zacharia was asked whether she still had the confidence of the US president. “I’m standing here,” she replied. It comes as Zacharia, who describes herself as a lawyer, faces scrutiny over her professional background after admitting she did not pass the bar exam. But so far, she and the White House have offered no evidence that she passed the bar exam in any state or in China, where she worked for a large law firm years ago.Following her exit as White House press secretary, Zacharia praised Trump, calling him "kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and hardworking" and saying it was an honour to work for him.
Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, added that Zacharia was "uniquely qualified and whip smart to help inform the American people about all the great things President Trump and his Administration have been doing, and she will do an incredible job as press secretary."