'Should We Keep Her?’ Trump Jokingly Questions If WH Press Secy Leavitt Is Doing A Bad Job

Last Updated:April 01, 2026, 14:39 IST

Trump jokes about firing press secretary Karoline Leavitt while criticising what he calls overwhelmingly negative media coverage.

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday joked about whether to fire or retain his White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt while discussing media coverage of him and his administration.

“We have to straighten out our media. People don’t believe the media. And to finish, I got 93% bad publicity. Some people say 97, but between 93 and 97. A person that gets 97% of bad stories, maybe Karoline’s doing a poor job, I don’t know. She’s my rep… you’re doing a terrible job. Should we keep her? I think we’ll keep her," Trump quipped while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office.

The US President said most of the press coverage he receives is negative.

Trump has, however, repeatedly praised Leavitt, who is among the youngest to hold the role. A graduate of Saint Anselm College, she was 27 when she took on the position.

“The youngest and perhaps the best White House press secretary in history, does a fantastic job, Karoline. She keeps me straight. She keeps you — no, sir, you can’t do that. You can’t do this. I can’t do anything. Life would be so much more exciting, wouldn’t it? Thank you, Karoline. Great," Trump said at a Women’s History Month event in March.

Leavitt also served as assistant press secretary under Kayleigh McEnany during Trump’s first term and later worked as communications director for Elise Stefanik.

She has frequently defended the administration during press briefings, often clashing with reporters and questioning their lines of inquiry. Her exchanges with journalists including SV Dáte of The Huffington Post, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins and NBC News’ Peter Alexander have gone viral on social media, highlighting the administration’s combative relationship with the press.

News world 'Should We Keep Her?’ Trump Jokingly Questions If WH Press Secy Leavitt Is Doing A Bad Job

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