Kaitlan Collins reveals what led to Katie Zacharia’s reported White House exit
WASHINGTON,DC: CNN’s Kaitlan Collins has offered a glimpse into the events that allegedly led President Donald Trump to part ways with Katie Zacharia just days after handing her the White House press secretary role.
In a post on X on Friday, October 16, Collins reported that Trump was unhappy with the attention surrounding Zacharia’s debut briefing.
When he asked members of his team to weigh in, she said, few were prepared to come to Zacharia’s defence.
Collins further reported that Zacharia’s exchange with Fox News host Sean Hannity proved decisive, as Trump had expected her to do more to defend him in television appearances.
I’m told Trump was embarrassed by the coverage of Zacharia’s briefing and when he polled other aides about her, Zacharia had few allies willing to stand up for her or defend her performance. The main reason he rushed to select her after growing irritated with how long the process was taking to replace Karoline Leavitt was because he wanted more people defending him on TV. When she failed to do so in a sufficient way with Sean Hannity, Trump said he knew she needed to go.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 16, 2026
Trump wanted a stronger defender
Collins said Trump’s decision to appoint Zacharia had been driven in part by his desire for someone who would defend him more forcefully on television.
According to her account, the president had grown impatient with the process of finding a replacement for former press secretary Karoline Leavitt and moved quickly to fill the vacancy.
However, the new appointee reportedly lost Trump’s confidence within days.
“I’m told Trump was embarrassed by the coverage of Zacharia’s briefing and when he polled other aides about her, Zacharia had few allies willing to stand up for her or defend her performance,” Collins wrote on X.
Collins added that Trump wanted Zacharia to defend him during media appearances but became convinced that she needed to go after she failed to do so sufficiently during an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity.
Zacharia’s appearance on Hannity’s show on Thursday proved uncomfortable, as the host challenged her over both her first briefing and her legal credentials.
😮 Katie Zacharia crashes and burns on [checks notes] Hannity 😮 If you had the "over" on Zacharia lasting more than one Scaramucci, her epic flame out on Hannity just now won't help your cause HANNITY: You said you consulted with people who advised you it was okay to call yourself a lawyer but not an attorney, correct? ZACHARIA: Correct HANNITY: There's a report out tonight showing 15 social media posts where you identify yourself as an attorney ZACHARIA: I think they were retweets Here's the whole interview:
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 16, 2026
Hannity pointed out that her debut briefing had lasted around 14 minutes and included questions from just three reporters.
He described the appearance as widely criticized and asked her how she thought it had gone.
Zacharia defended her performance, saying she had stepped into the role with very little time to prepare.
She argued that she had been able to deliver breaking news and suggested she might have been better off making an introductory statement before taking questions.
The interview then turned to her legal background.
Hannity asked directly whether she had passed the bar exam after graduating from Pepperdine University.
Zacharia acknowledged that she had not passed the California examination and confirmed she had never taken it again.
Trump suggested Zacharia reconsider her role
Trump addressed the situation earlier on Friday, saying he had personally urged Zacharia to think carefully about whether she wanted to remain in the job.
“I said to her, ‘Honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider. You'd think about it. But I would reconsider,’” he told reporters.
He described Zacharia as a nice person with a beautiful family and said the media had treated her harshly.
Trump also referenced the criticism she faced on Fox News, including from Hannity and Fox & Friends.
President Trump told White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia that she should reconsider taking the job. “I said to her, ‘Honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider. You'd think about it. But I would reconsider.’” “She's got a beautiful husband and familly. I met the family yesterday. Beautiful kids. It's like from a picture postcard. And I said, ‘You should reconsider because you don't want to go through this.’” “Katie's been treated very badly by the media. Very, very badly. Very unfairly, I think. And I just spoke to her about it. I said, Katie, ‘Is this for you?’ Because, you know, she's been treated very rough and she's a nice person. Very nice person. I've watched her for years on television. But I said, ‘Is this for you, Katie?’” “Because, honestly, you don't need this. You don't have to be treated. I would say the fake news, but just generally the media has been very rough.” “She was on Sean Hannity last night, and Sean was a little bit tough. I saw Fox and Friends this morning. They were being tough. She's been treated, I would say, pretty nastily. And I said to Katie just two minutes ago, I said, ‘Katie, you know, you don't have to do this if you don't want to.’ She said, ‘This is a lot tougher.’ I said, ‘Welcome to the world of Trump.’”
— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) October 16, 2026
“I said, ‘Katie, you know, you don't have to do this if you don't want to,’” he recalled.
Several media outlets reported on Friday that Zacharia had been removed from her role as White House press secretary. Reuters reported that she had been dismissed, while The New York Times also reported the development, citing people familiar with the matter.
Separately, an official at the White House confirmed her departure to AFP.
