Trump appoints 27-year-old as Press Secretary
London – In yet another surprising appointment to key positions in the US government, President-elect Donald Trump announced a young woman of just 27 years old, Karoline Leavitt, as the future White House Press Secretary.
She will be responsible for dealing with the country’s most experienced journalists and answering questions on behalf of the administration in a high-tension environment, conducting press briefings in the iconic White House press room.
Leavitt, who served as spokesperson for the 2024 presidential campaign, becomes the youngest person to hold that position in U.S. history, surpassing Ron Ziegler, who was 29 years old when appointed by Richard Nixon in 1969.
Trump justifies choosing new Press Secretary
Donald Trump expressed confidence in Karoline Leavitt’s abilities, describing her as “smart, tough and a highly effective communicator.”
In a post on X, she said:
“Thank you, President Trump, for believing in me. I receive it with humility and honor. “
A New Hampshire native, Leavitt majored in communications and political science at Saint Anselm College.
She interned at Fox News, a right-wing and Trump-aligned TV network, and in the White House press office during the president-elect’s first term.
The future press secretary did not have greater experience in press vehicles, such as the current occupant of the position in Joe Biden’s government, Karine Jean-Pierre, who was a political analyst for NBC News and MSNBC and is a speaker on international relations and public at Columbia University.
After completing her studies in 2019, Leavitt joined the White House staff, initially serving as a presidential speechwriter and then as assistant press secretary under the leadership of Kayleigh McEnany.
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Leavitt and the “biased media”
She launched herself as a candidate for a seat in Congress representing her state in 2022. On her campaign website, she stated that she contributed to “preparing press secretary Kayleigh McEnany for high-pressure press conferences and facing the “biased media”.
In the 2024 election campaign, which resulted in Donald Trump’s victory over Kamala Harris, Leavitt adopted a confrontational stance in front of TV anchors and reporters, a sign that the briefings may not be calm.
The Press Secretary will work closely with Steven Cheung, announced as the new White House Communications Director.
Cheung is another who wins the position after remaining loyal to Donald Trump, for whom he had previously worked, in the 2016 campaign and then as one of the directors of the communications team.
He will oversee the White House’s overall communications strategy, while Leavitt will focus on direct interaction with the press.
Also read | ‘Fake news’, ‘enemies of the people’: how Trump’s hostility towards the press could worsen in his second term
