New Trump Press Secretary Addresses Reports of a White House Rift Over Her Hiring

Instagram/Katie Zacharia Donald Trump’s new press secretary has found herself at the heart of claims of two bitter White House power struggles ahead of her first appearance behind the podium.

A Daily Mail report published Tuesday suggested Katie Zacharia’s appointment exposed a widening rift between Trump, 80, and his powerful chief of staff, Susie Wiles, 69, because she wasn’t Wiles’s first choice and was blindsided by the announcement.

It also reported that Zacharia faces an awkward reunion with White House communications official Lauren Bis, with whom she has ongoing beef from their time working together at the Department of Homeland Security.

Well-placed sources told the Beast that Wiles had not only been fully aware of Trump’s decision to hire Zacharia, but had also supported it.

“At no point was Wiles in the dark or the deciding factor.

It was the president’s pick,” they said.

And speaking to the Daily Beast ahead of her big debut in the West Wing’s Brady Press Briefing Room, Zacharia dismissed rumors of a rift and insisted her only duty was to the president.

“I don’t belong to any camp—I am in President Trump’s corner and will continue to amplify his message as I have done for many years prior to my appointment,” the MAGA commentator, 41, told the Beast.

However, as Bis now answers to Zacharia, White House sources said Bis may well be regretting her past choices.

As DHS’s assistant secretary, Bis was understood to have wanted to be the department’s public face and had sought to limit Zacharia’s opportunities to appear on TV.

This was despite Zacharia having been hired by then Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and her chief adviser, Corey Lewandowski, specifically for that job.

Zacharia left DHS after approximately six weeks following the removal of Noem and Lewandowski.

Despite their reported history, people close to the new press secretary insisted to the Mail that she is not planning to use her appointment to punish former colleagues.

But one White House source told the Beast that if Bis does have “a vendetta” against Zacharia, it’s worth her remembering: “Katie is her boss…" Zacharia’s appointment has drawn scrutiny over her history of promoting conspiracy theories.