Wanted: White House Press Secretary. Running shoes essential.
Good morning everyone.
Last week, we awoke to the news that there is a vacancy in the White House press office again, following Katie Zacharia’s departure less than a fews days in the job. Quite the opening for anyone considering a career move.
I found myself imagining being catapulted into that position. Your responsibility? Explain the President of the United States’ message to the world, daily, hourly and sometimes minute by minute.
Then you remember that your boss is Donald Trump!
How do you speak for a man who is already his own press officer, publicist and rolling news channel?
He speaks with absolutes and total confidence. He shoots from the hip. Watching him, you sometimes get the impression that the policy is being assembled at precisely the same moment as the sentence.
Meanwhile, somewhere nearby, a press officer is looking down at a briefing document that has just become redundant,
I have always said that it is very hard to catch a runaway train. You can run after it, but the train keeps getting faster and faster. Representing Trump must occasionally feel like being asked to catch that train, climb aboard and explain why it has changed tracks.
Ask my good pal Anthony Scaramucci. His spell as White House communications director famously lasted just ten days. A different position, but a memorable lesson in how quickly proximity to power can become a professional ordeal.
Think of it this way: 2 Zacharia = 1 Scaramucci.
In most workplaces, you measure service in years. In this White House, getting through the induction could qualify as an achievement.
With the midterms approaching, the next appointment carries an additional challenge. A bad result for Republicans could weaken Trump’s political authority and, if Democrats win control of either chamber, bring much more aggressive congressional scrutiny.
That would not automatically make him powerless. Nor would it mean that staff could simply be impeached for an untruth at a press briefing. Impeachment is a constitutional process, with the House bringing charges and the Senate conducting a trial.
But the professional risk is real. Every explanation given today can become tomorrow’s uncomfortable question.
After over 30 years in public relations, I know that a spokesperson’s most valuable asset is credibility. You need access to the decision maker, reliable information and the confidence to say: “Mr President, that is not correct.” Best of luck with these few words.
The question is whether anyone taking this job would have the freedom to do that.
The title might belong to the White House. The reputation you put on the line is your own.
There is a vacancy in the White House.
Who fancies chasing the train?
