Former Representative George Santos said he would jump at the chance to be President Donald Trump’s press secretary, hours after Katie Zacharia announced her departure from the role.
“Hey I’m not technically open for a job because I have one already…. butttttttt… I’d jump to serve POTUS as press secretary in a heart beat. Just saying,” the former Republican congressman from New York wrote on X Friday night.
There is no indication that Santos is being considered for the role. Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment on who will replace Zacharia.
A White House official confirmed to Newsweek on Friday that Zacharia was “transitioning” out of the role after just five days on the job.
Santos was expelled from Congress in late 2023 and convicted on charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Trump commuted his sentence in October 2025 after he had served three months in prison.
...
Trump Advises Zacharia to 'Reconsider' Role Amid Criticism
Zacharia faced intense criticism following her first and only press briefing Tuesday, as questions mounted over her legal background. Although a law license is not required for the role, she has described herself as a lawyer despite not passing a U.S. bar exam.
The conservative commentator graduated from Pepperdine University’s law school and sat for the bar exam in 2011 but did not pass. She called the result “inconsequential” because she knew she would be moving to China. She also got married that same week.
“I practiced international transaction law, with all the appropriate credentials,” Zacharia told Newsweek in a statement earlier this week.
Zacharia was then grilled by Fox News host Sean Hannity about her legal background Thursday night. Santos criticized Hannity’s handling of the interview.
“You think you are untouchable and like to sit high on your horse and judged people,” Santos posted on X.
The State Bar of California previously told Newsweek it had no record of Zacharia being licensed to practice law in the state under either her married or maiden name.
On Friday, Trump told reporters he had advised Zacharia to “reconsider” her position.
“I just asked her, ‘Is this for you?’” Trump said, adding that she had been treated badly by the media. “And she’s a nice person. I’m going to let her make that decision.”
Friday night, Zacharia thanked Trump for the opportunity, saying it was an honor to work for him.
“President Trump is a kind, wonderful, gracious, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and hardworking man,” she wrote in an Instagram post. “I wish more Americans appreciated him. No one will ever make America great the way he has and continues to.”
Conservative commentator and part-time Trump adviser Laura Loomer has also floated herself for the position.
“Hear me out: Press Secretary Laura Loomer,” she wrote on X.
Who Could Replace Zacharia?
The administration is once again tasked with filling the vacancy left by Karoline Leavitt, who left the post in late August to spend more time with her family. She gave birth to her second child in May.
Before Zacharia’s appointment, other names floated for the role included CNN commentator Scott Jennings, White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly, Communications Director Steven Cheung and conservative author Elizabeth Pipko.
Trump has publicly praised Jennings as a potential successor and suggested White House adviser Margo Martin.
Prediction market Kalshi listed Jennings as its leading contender on Saturday, followed by Kelly and former Fox News host Maria Bartiromo.
According to a Friday report from Axios, two administration sources said Trump wanted Bartiromo to replace Leavitt. Bartiromo, one of Trump’s most prominent television allies, left Fox News in September after more than a decade at the network. Fox did not give a reason for her departure, prompting speculation about her next move.
Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here. Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Steve Mollman and Anthony Murray.