Zacharia Begins White House Press Briefing Role After Appointment

Katie Zacharia held her first White House press briefing on Tuesday after President Donald Trump selected her as press secretary, taking over the role after Karoline Leavitt’s departure and addressing administration priorities, media access and a personnel decision involving the U.S. ambassador to Greece.

Zacharia spent much of the 14-minute appearance delivering prepared remarks about Trump’s agenda before answering questions from reporters, according to NBC News and Yahoo News. She said her role would focus on communicating the president’s work to Americans.

The new press secretary also revealed that the administration asked Kimberly Guilfoyle, the U.S. ambassador to Greece, to resign following allegations of misconduct, according to NBC News. Guilfoyle’s status was raised during a question from the Daily Mail.

When Fox News asked whether the United States had stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine, Zacharia said she would need to provide a later response, according to NBC News.

Trump announced Zacharia’s appointment on Friday. Before joining the White House role, she served as a senior communications adviser for Trump Media and Technology Group and previously worked as a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, according to Fox News.

The briefing came as Trump prepared for midterm election campaign travel, with Zacharia saying the president would continue visits to Kentucky, Georgia and Florida. NBC News reported that a poll found 41% of registered voters approved of Trump’s performance, a second-term low in that survey.

Zacharia also discussed managing the demands of the position while raising four children. She said her family would move to the Washington area as she begins her new assignment.

White House Communications Director Stephen Cheung publicly supported Zacharia’s first appearance, describing the briefing as a strong start and praising her communication of the administration’s record.