Trump’s USA The President’s Team

Is the new White Houe press secretary a lawyer—or not?

The new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia, claims to be a lawyer, but American media outlets have come up empty-handed when trying to verify this.

"Something doesn't add up," writes the *Huffington Post*, for instance.

It was independent journalist Judd Legum who first noted that Zacharia does not appear to be licensed to practice law in any U.S. state, and there is no evidence that she has passed the American bar exam.

Reporters tried to clarify the matter when President Donald Trump introduced her on Tuesday. When asked when and where she passed the bar exam, she replied, "When I moved to China"—an answer that raised more questions than it answered.

Analysis: The Giants don’t let their fans play quarterback

White House press secretary Katie Zacharia has held her first press conference, and the media’s impression of the person tasked with handling relations with them is anything but positive.

In an analysis, *The Guardian*’s U.S. correspondent David Smith writes that during the press conference, Zacharia delivered Trump propaganda with the same warmth, knowledge, and political finesse as an AI bot.

"It was bad. So embarrassing that you squirmed with discomfort and didn't know where to look," he writes, dubbing Zacharia "The Zachbot."

Many commentators are drawing comparisons to Anthony Scaramucci, who served as Trump’s press secretary for a record-short eleven days. Even Scaramucci himself is now writing that "the clock is ticking." David Litt of MS Now writes that the problem lies in Trump’s disregard for credentials. When he introduced Zacharia, he highlighted her long-standing loyalty above all else, rather than her professional qualifications.

“I assume the New York Giants appreciate their biggest fans. The same is surely true for Marvel Studios and the members of the K-pop group BTS. But that doesn’t mean the fans get to play quarterback, take on the role of Peter Parker in the next Spider-Man movie, or perform ‘Swim’ during the next world tour.”