From§Each

Page A215From§Eachthe afternoon edition — 16 October 2026

FASTEST FIRED

Press secretary fired after five days, replacing the Scaramucci as American politics' base unit of time

By The LodgersThe Euro Desk

“Scaramucci replaced by shorter unit of time - a Zacharia”, 16 October 2026 (Photo via RTÉ — the original report)

As it ran on the front

Today we are making a press secretary, which does not keep. You will need five days: Katie Zacharia was picked on the ninth of October and fired on Friday, five days after she took the job, which a White House official told the Guardian before anyone had announced it formally.

For the rest you will need a conservative commentator who had been a communications adviser at Trump Media and Technology Group; the vacancy left by Karoline Leavitt, who went in August; a law degree from Pepperdine, 2011, which the university confirms; and the midterm elections, less than a month off. No, you cannot substitute.…

Clive Does not keep. Nothing I write keeps either, not in this house, and I am the only one at this table producing anything at all.

Gary You are producing a smell of toast and a locked door. I could have that door off in an afternoon and the house would thank me for the light.

Begin on Tuesday, with the first briefing: fourteen minutes of it, and widely panned. That one went on the floor in front of the whole room. Anthony Scaramucci, whom the president made communications director in July 2017 — Sean Spicer announced he would resign over the appointment — posted that afternoon, "The clock is running," and then, "Thus far 1/11th of a Scaramucci."

Rob You took the shed door off in the spring and it is still leaning on the boiler. It was always going to end like this.

Keith There is an angle in it. Tenure sold by the unit, American, stamped on a mug — moving by Thursday, and the kitty takes its cut.

Thursday she sat with Sean Hannity on Fox News and said she had not passed the bar exam, which is the examination that decides whether a person with a law degree may practise law at all; a graduate who has not passed it cannot. She had said before that she practised law, and the president had described her as an attorney. You will be looking for the hearing. There is none: the job is handed over by one man and taken back by the same one, and on Friday a press official said she had been "let go."

RTÉ, the Irish broadcaster, printed it as arithmetic — "Scaramucci replaced by shorter unit of time - a Zacharia." Le Monde called the stint gaffe-filled. At home the word was "let go."

Clive A mug. I offer this house a verse and it wants crockery; I shall read it anyway, and the meter can listen.

Serves the president, who is flying round the country boosting Republican candidates with the elections less than a month away. The briefing room pays: five days of press secretary, fourteen minutes of it at the podium.

Rob Read it to the meter, it is the only thing here still on. They have got through theirs already, and we have not had a rota since the clocks went back.

“They told us she was an attorney, she told Hannity she never passed the bar, and five days later she's gone — the job of standing up and answering for this government got filled like a shift nobody wanted. That podium is the one place a reporter gets to ask the White House something in public and get it on the record. A month out from the elections, the president's out flying round for candidates and the answering happens on Fox.”
Sal
“Look, she was let go — let go, that's not fired, there's a difference, and if you can't hear the difference that's — did I say that? That doesn't sound like me. The president acted inside a week, which is accountability, which is the thing you people say you want; and Pepperdine handed out the degree, so take the credentials question up with Pepperdine.”
Chip

Earlier in this story

The receipts

Who is Katie Zacharia, Trump’s next White House press secretary? Trump's next press secretary comes straight from his own media company
Washington Examinerright§

President Donald Trump tapped Katie Zacharia, a conservative commentator and communications adviser for Trump Media and Technology Group, to serve as his next White House press secretary. Zacharia will succeed Karoline Leavitt, who left the White House in August. Her appointment comes less than a month before the 2026 midterm elections…

Katie Zacharia fired after five days as White House press secretary
The Guardianmainstream§

Zacharia hosted widely panned first briefing on Tuesday and faced scrutiny after admitting she didn’t pass bar exam Donald Trump’s new press secretary, Katie Zacharia, was fired on Friday, just five days after she assumed the role, according to a White House official. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about the personnel…

Embattled new White House Press Secretary Zacharia 'let go' from her role Trump picked a press secretary who hadn't passed the bar. He fired her a week later.
France 24mainstream§

A White House Press official said Friday that Secretary ​Katie Zacharia was "let go" from her role after US President Donald Trump signaled she was on her way out, a week after he picked her for the post. Zacharia's credentials as an attorney had come under scrutiny and she admitted to not having passed the bar in an interview with Fox…

Scaramucci quips about new press secretary Zacharia's tenure: 'The clock is running'
The Hillmainstream§

Anthony Scaramucci is weighing in on Katie Zacharia's first briefing as White House press secretary, quipping that the clock is ticking on her tenure. "The clock is running," Scaramucci wrote on X on Tuesday, shortly after Zacharia wrapped her inaugural briefing at the White House as press secretary. "Thus far 1/11th of a Scaramucci,"…

Katie Zacharia admits she never passed legal exams – video
The Guardianmainstream§

In an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity, the new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia, admitted that she did not pass the bar exam, after facing scrutiny about her legal career before becoming the top spokesperson for Trump. Zacharia had previously said she practiced law before entering politics, and Trump had described her as…

· White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer announces his intention to resign as White House Press Secretary due to Donald Trump's appointment of Anthony Scaramucci as the White House Communications Direc from the morgue, 21 Jul 2017

· Russia’s Lavrov blasts US, Western allies as “warmongers’ in fiery UN tirade from the morgue, 26 Sep 2026

· Russia and China unite against US over Iran and Cuba in UN speeches from the morgue, 26 Sep 2026

· U.S. military lays groundwork for potential action around Cuba from the morgue, 26 Sep 2026

· The United Nations Security Council has resoundingly rejected a United States bid to extend a global arms embargo on Iran. In a Security Council vote, United States only got support from the Dominican from the morgue, 14 Aug 2020

· U.S. Threatens New Economic War on Iran by Targeting China & Tehran's Other Top Trading Partners from the morgue, 25 Aug 2026

· In Defiant UN Speech, Iranian President Says US and Israel Are the Real Terrorists from the morgue, 23 Sep 2026

· Trump slams reporting on removal of his endorsements from GOP candidate's website from the morgue, 27 Sep 2026

· Donalds removes several Trump mentions from campaign website from the morgue, 22 Sep 2026

· GOP hopeful removes ‘Pro-Trump’ mention from campaign slogan in deep-red seat from the morgue, 23 Sep 2026

· Where Trump’s 2026 endorsement record stands after primary season from the morgue, 9 Sep 2026

· U.N. experts say U.S. may have committed war crimes with 2 Iran strikes from the morgue, 22 Sep 2026

· Trump Says 'Big Decision' Coming on Whether to 'Annihilate' Iran from the morgue, 18 Sep 2026

· Pentagon No. 3 frustrates senators in closed-door briefing on Iran war, Trump defense strategy from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Senate Democrats, minus Fetterman, urge Hegseth to provide receipt for Iran war costs from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Hegseth on "devastation" to Iran's capabilities from the morgue, 10 Sep 2026

· Trump admits Iran war will not end before midterms from the morgue, 9 Sep 2026

· Iran War Trump Said Would Be Quick Has Now Lasted 6 Months With 'No End In Sight' from the morgue, 28 Aug 2026

· CBO Finds Trump's Iran War Has Already Cost Nearly $40 Billion—And That's a 'Conservative' Estimate from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Tillis supports Hegseth impeachment resolution: 'He needs to go' from the morgue, 18 Sep 2026

· Massie Files Impeachment Articles Against Hegseth for Illegal Iran War, Boat Murders from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Massie launches effort to impeach Hegseth from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Tillis urges Trump to fire Hegseth over 'inept management' of military from the morgue, 2 Sep 2026

· Tillis renews calls for Hegseth’s firing after Driscoll’s departure: ‘I have never witnessed more inept management’ from the morgue, 2 Sep 2026

· Farmer who voted for Trump says farmers are "all just in survival mode" from the morgue, 18 Sep 2026

· Farmer who voted for Trump says "I can't stay in business" amid rising costs from the morgue, 18 Sep 2026

· Massie says he’s convinced enough Republicans to pass Epstein Files II discharge petition from the morgue, 18 Sep 2026

· Massie names Epstein 'coconspirators,' discusses new Epstein files legislation from the morgue, 1 Sep 2026

· Read Thomas Massie’s eight impeachment charges against Pete Hegseth from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Fake Republican midterm convention site still redirects to Epstein files from the morgue, 7 Sep 2026

· Trump says he has a ‘big decision’ coming up on Iran: ‘Do I want to go in and annihilate them’ from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Fox News Poll: 71% think Trump administration lacks plan to end Iran war from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Iran recently downed at least 2 American drones, officials say from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Big Oil Stocks Surged Due to Iran War—and New Filings Show How President Trump Cashed In from the morgue, 27 Aug 2026

· Live updates: Energy secretary downplays rising gas prices as US, Iran trade strikes from the morgue, 6 Sep 2026

· U.S. Strike on Iranian School May Have Been War Crime, U.N. Report Says from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· UN Inquiry Finds US Strike on Minab, Iran That Killed 123 Children Was War Crime from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· UN investigators conclude ‘reasonable grounds’ to believe certain US strikes in Iran were war crimes from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· UN Suspects US War Crimes in Iran from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· US Condemned for 'War Crimes' After Bombing of Wedding Party in Iran from the morgue, 2 Sep 2026

· US investigating if missile hit Iranian wedding ceremony, killing 4 from the morgue, 4 Sep 2026

· Trump says he has a ‘big decision coming up’ on Iran from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· White House issues explosive response to UN-backed report claiming US committed war crimes against world’s No.1 sponsor of terror, Iran from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Human rights experts: 'Reasonable grounds' to believe US committed war crimes with Iran strikes from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· US Energy Consumers Have Spent $121 Billion Extra Since Trump Launched Iran War: Moody's from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Iran downed at least 2 American drones in recent days, U.S. officials say from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Iran: Account of US Air Force colonel's rescue 'fictional' from the morgue, 17 Sep 2026

· Consumer Burden of Trump Iran War Exceeds $100 Billion as Oil Prices Pass $100 a Barrel from the morgue, 9 Sep 2026

· 'A Serious and Alarming Threat': US Bombing, Blockade Deepen Iran Medical Crisis from the morgue, 9 Sep 2026

· Consumer Confidence Hits Lowest Level in Months as US Faces 'Trump's Reckless Tariffs and War With Iran' from the morgue, 25 Aug 2026

· U.S. Air Force officer rescued from Iran speaks for the first time to 60 Minutes from the morgue, 8 Sep 2026

· Rep. Thomas Massie forcing vote on Pete Hegseth's impeachment from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· Did Johnson Just Adjourn Congress for 7 Weeks to Avoid Massie's Impeachment Articles Against Hegseth? from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Massie saying Johnson is sending the House home early to prevent Hegseth impeachment from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· ‘You’re Elected to Fight and Kill the Other Side’: How Congress Lost Its Way from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· Army combat veteran challenging Mike Lawler calls Hegseth national security 'hazard,' backs impeachment from the morgue, 6 Sep 2026

· Former Air Force secretary says he 'couldn't serve' in Trump administration from the morgue, 6 Sep 2026

· Former Air Force secretary: Hegseth's Pentagon 'dysfunctional' from the morgue, 3 Sep 2026

· House Republicans split over leaving Washington early for campaign trail from the morgue, 1 Sep 2026

· Since 2025, Trump Made More Stock Trades Than All 535 Congress Members Combined from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· Fossil Fuel Advertising Contracts Hit Record High as Big Oil Pockets Billions From Iran War from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· 'How are we gonna get through this?' Many Americans are struggling as prices rise from the morgue, 16 Sep 2026

· Trump's Top Oil Stocks Have Made Him Up to $4.4 Million Richer During Iran War: Analysis from the morgue, 9 Sep 2026

· 'Trump Did It!': At $5.85 a Gallon, Diesel Price Hits All-Time High in US Thanks to War on Iran from the morgue, 4 Sep 2026

· Gas prices reach Labor Day high amid Iran war from the morgue, 8 Sep 2026

· Trump Hammered Over Iran War That Drove Gas Prices Above $4 Per Gallon Every Day in August for First Time Ever from the morgue, 31 Aug 2026

· Warsh under pressure as Fed weighs rate hike from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Inflation held at 3.4% in August in consumer price index, creating tough choice for Warsh Fed from the morgue, 11 Sep 2026

· Warsh indicates Fed could raise rates to cool inflation from the morgue, 28 Aug 2026

· Key U.S. Bond Rate Near 20-Year High as Oil Prices Keep Climbing from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· 10-year Treasury yield hits highest level since 2007, oil surges above $105 as Fed expected to hike interest rates from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Benchmark mortgage rate hits 14-month high as bond yields keep rising from the morgue, 10 Sep 2026

· Benchmark mortgage rate hits highest mark in over a year from the morgue, 3 Sep 2026

· Goldman Sachs warns oil prices could hit $120 as U.S. fuel costs surge from the morgue, 8 Sep 2026

· Massie Moves to Force Impeachment Vote Against Hegseth, Citing Civilian Deaths from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· GOP Rep Thomas Massie introduces 8 articles of impeachment against War Secretary Pete Hegseth from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Republican Rep. Massie moves to impeach Defense Secretary Hegseth over Iran war from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Thomas Massie Forces Vote To Impeach Pete Hegseth from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

· Pete Hegseth Faces Growing Criticism as War With Iran Rolls On from the morgue, 3 Sep 2026

· Hegseth Quietly Extends Middle East Troop Deployments Into 2027 as Iran War Drags On from the morgue, 3 Sep 2026

· Costco imposes purchase limits on motor oil, hikes prices by nearly double from the morgue, 15 Sep 2026

This page is a back-issue: the story as it ran, receipts as they were. The current edition is at the front. The byline is a pen name for a column drafted by a machine and checked by the editor: how this is made.