A 13-Minute Briefing Under Fire... Controversy Grows Over White House Press Secretary

[Anchor]

US President Donald Trump's newly appointed White House press secretary is facing intense controversy right out of the gate. From an unprepared and inexperienced briefing to absurd slips of the tongue, allegations have also surfaced that her lawyer credentials may be false.

Washington correspondent Lee Hanseok reports.

[Reporter]

Newly appointed White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia, selected as the successor to former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

[Katie Zacharia / White House Press Secretary : I am deeply honored to work for President Trump and the American people.]

However, during her first official briefing just two days into her tenure, she failed to take her eyes off her prepared notes while reading for about eight minutes. After taking questions from only three pro-government reporters, she abruptly cut the briefing short, stating that President Trump would answer questions herself, and rushed off the stage.

[Katie Zacharia / White House Press Secretary : You can ask President Trump about that there (in Alaska). Thank you.]

During the remarks, she also made an absurd slip of the tongue by referring to her husband as the president.

[Katie Zacharia / White House Press Secretary : So, my president... oh, I'm sorry. My husband... that was funny just now. My husband is here (in Washington).]

U.S. media outlets poured harsh reviews on the shoddy briefing, which lasted a mere 13 minutes in total, and even raised suspicions of a "fake resume."

Zacharia has maintained that she is an attorney who graduated from Pepperdine University Law School, but when asked in which state she obtained her license, she gave an irrelevant answer.

[Katie Zacharia / White House Press Secretary : (In which state did you pass the bar exam?) That was when I went over to China.]

However, The Washington Post pointed out that non-citizens cannot obtain legal qualifications in China and that there are no records of her bar registration in any of the 50 U.S. states.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Zacharia failed the California bar exam back in 2011.

As the controversy grew, the White House Communications Director defended her, stating she was not chosen for "legal work" and that she would do a good job as press secretary.

After working as a commentator for conservative media outlets like Fox News and joining the presidential election campaign, she caught President Trump's eye, but taking a severe blow to her credibility right as she starts her job has fueled growing calls for her dismissal.

(Video Shooting: Oh Jung-sik, Video Editing: Kim Byung-jik)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.