Political Guyentist
← 2026-10-1318brief

[UPDATE] Katie Zacharia replaces Karoline Leavitt as White House press secretary as CNN surfaces her conspiracy-laced posts

Her first briefing is Tuesday, Oct. 13, the first formal White House briefing since Sept. 3.

Katie Zacharia, a communications adviser at Trump's Truth Social, started as White House press secretary on Monday, Oct. 12 (Washington Examiner, The Washington Post). A CNN KFile review published that day found she repeatedly posted baseless pedophilia accusations against prominent Democrats, mostly in 2022, including claims echoing the debunked "Pizzagate" theory. Asked about the posts, neither she nor the White House addressed their content.

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Leavitt left the job in late August. On Oct. 9, Trump named Zacharia to replace her in a Truth Social post.

What KFile found:

  • "Pedo Podesta" (September 2022), aimed at John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign chairman and a central target of Pizzagate.
  • Since-deleted June 2025 posts urging the administration to "suspend habeas corpus," the right to challenge detention in court, "for reasons of Invasion."
  • A since-deleted December 2025 warning that the 2026 midterms "will be a bloodbath if we don't shift course now."