Katie Zacharia Breaks Silence: 'I Was Not Prepared for the Hostility'

Former White House press secretary Katie Zacharia told Newsmax on Tuesday that the media and Washington establishment made it difficult for her to do her job during her brief tenure in President Donald Trump's administration, saying she wanted to focus attention on his accomplishments rather than herself.

In her first television appearance since leaving the White House after just five days, Zacharia told "Finnerty" that she encountered resistance as an outsider in Washington.

"The media does not like outsiders and Washington, D.C., does not like outsiders," Zacharia said.

"The media and all of Washington made it very difficult for me to do the job I set out to do," she added, explaining that she wanted to promote Trump's record ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

Zacharia also suggested she likely would still be press secretary had she not appeared on Sean Hannity's Fox News program and "Fox & Friends" shortly before her departure.

"I would hope so, and I would likely think I would be, Rob, but I can't know what would have happened otherwise, though it would be very likely," she told host Rob Finnerty.

Zacharia said she was surprised by Hannity's questioning, which included scrutiny of her legal credentials and failure to pass the bar examination.

"I'm just as perplexed about what happened, specifically with Sean Hannity," she said.

She described previously enjoying a friendly relationship with Hannity, whose team had approached her earlier this year about potentially working as a California street correspondent.

"I was not prepared for the hostility that I received," she said.

Despite her brief tenure, Zacharia said she developed positive relationships with White House communications director Steven Cheung and Trump, whom she praised for his treatment of her.

She also expressed appreciation for Trump's public defense of her around the time of her departure, when he suggested that dealing with hostile reporters was not worth the difficulties of the job.

"He has been nothing but kind and gracious," Zacharia said.

Zacharia said one of her principal objectives as press secretary was to improve coverage of Trump's campaign appearances, particularly in The Wall Street Journal. She said she was meeting with the newspaper's representatives on her last day in the job.

"The intention of setting that meeting was I wanted to secure positive or at least fair headlines for President Trump on these midterm rallies," she said.

Zacharia criticized the Journal's recent coverage of Trump's rallies and said she had hoped to engage directly with reporters covering his campaign appearances.

"I wanted to sit down with them and meet them at every single rally where they traveled and give a positive quote or opinion about those rallies," she said.

Although she is no longer press secretary, Zacharia made clear that she remains interested in serving Trump.

"Absolutely. I would do so in a heartbeat," she said when asked whether she wanted to work for him again.

Asked whether she would return as press secretary, Zacharia said, "I don't know if I'd say I want the old job back, though. If the president asked, as he did before, I would take it, Rob."

Zacharia also endorsed former Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo as a possible successor.

"I thought Maria Bartiromo was an excellent choice for President Trump," she said. "She is tough. She is loyal. She knows every little detail on the business side, but also on the political side."

Axios reported earlier this month that Trump had considered Bartiromo before hiring Zacharia, but Bartiromo signaled she would decline.

Zacharia praised Bartiromo's ability to challenge mainstream media coverage while remaining loyal to Trump.

"I think she would be excellent at really holding the mainstream media and fake news accountable, while being loyal and also kind," she said.

Zacharia, now back in California, hinted that she might have another opportunity ahead, although she offered no specifics.

"I think what I can say is there is a lot of exciting things ahead, and I will always be an advocate for what he is doing," she said.

When Finnerty suggested she appeared to have something lined up, Zacharia replied, "That's fair."

Credit: newsmax.com