New White House press secretary under fire after 'brutal' first press conference is cut short

It was a tough first day at the office for Donald Trump's new press secretary Katie Zacharia, as her first press conference in the new job came in for some criticism.

She just started the job yesterday (12 October) and while she said she was 'so honoured to work for President Trump and the American people' in the job she also mistakenly said 'my president' when she meant 'my husband', and there were many critics of how she did overall.

One viewer said that Zacharia 'makes Karoline Leavitt seem like Winston Churchill', while another asked 'is this a hostage video', with the whole thing being a rather brief affair as she only took a handful of questions.

Others called it a 'car crash in real time', while Anthony Scaramucci, one of her predecessors in the job, was among the critics who suggested she'd need to up her game or not last very long.

"The clock is running. Thus far 1/11th of a Scaramucci," he said, referring to his own 11 day tenure as White House communications director which has become a unit of measurement in politics.

Liz Truss, for example, was prime minister for 4.1 Scaramucci's.

Viewers said they'd give her 'half a Scaramucci' and wondered 'how many Scaramucci's' she would last in the role, which isn't much of a sign of confidence in her.

It seems Scaramucci is not the only one wondering whether his record for the shortest-lived stint at the press office lectern is going to last as MS NOW reporter Jake Traylor said a White House official also gave Zacharia a bad review on her first go.

They told the reporter: "Getting behind the podium is tough, but she got off on the wrong foot. She needs to get much better, fast, otherwise she'll break Scaramucci's record."

There were other more positive noises coming through the White House's official channels on how she did in the job as well as her outlook for the future.

White House communications director Steven Cheung told LADbible: "Katie is a fabulous and wonderful addition to the team.

"She is uniquely qualified and whip smart to help inform the American people about all the great things president Trump and his Administration have been doing, and she will do an incredible job as press secretary."

Speaking about assuming her new role in the White House, Zacharia had said: "I am grateful to serve president Trump as press secretary, and I will diligently and effectively amplify his successful agenda."

Zacharia is there to replace Karoline Leavitt, who left the job earlier this year, and she is Trump's sixth press secretary as he's gone through several people in the position before finding a replacement.

Trump, meanwhile, said she did 'very good'.