New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia defends her legal background and first briefing amid criticism

New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia on Thursday defended her legal background and justified her truncated inaugural briefing as she navigates a rocky first week as the president’s chief spokeswoman. Zacharia sat down for an interview with conservative media. She told the conservative Human Events outlet that she did not have time to get fully prepared ahead of her first briefing on Tuesday and that it was always the plan to keep it short because President Donald Trump would field questions from journalists later that morning. “It was absolutely my goal to keep it short, considering he is his own best spokesperson, and he would love—and does love—gaggling with the media as he goes to Marine One,” Zacharia said. “So I wanted to give ample deference and not barge into his time.” The initial briefing materials were given to Zacharia on Monday evening, then completed Tuesday at 8 a.m., less than two hours before she would appear before the White House press corps. She had been up since 3 a.m. preparing, Zacharia said. “I never had a full briefing beforehand, and I went out and I effectuated the briefing,” she said. Later, speaking to Fox News commentator Sean Hannity, she sa…

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