New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia repeatedly identified herself as an "attorney" on social media and in media appearances, despite failing the California bar exam and being advised against using the term. This has raised questions about her legal credentials and prompted calls for an investigation.
New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia has faced scrutiny for consistently identifying herself as an "attorney" across various social media platforms, including X and Truth Social, and during television and podcast interviews, between April 2025 and September 2026. This conduct occurred despite her failure to pass the California bar exam in 2011, the year she graduated from Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law. Sources close to Zacharia indicated she was advised she could use the term "lawyer" due to her Juris Doctor degree and international legal experience, but not "attorney" or "esquire." Zacharia amplified numerous media headlines from outlets like Fox News and One America News that explicitly labeled her an "attorney." Although she claimed to have been "very careful" not to present herself as an "attorney at law" and stated that sharing these posts was not an endorsement, evidence shows a pattern of promoting this title. She explained that she considered the bar exam results "inconsequential" after moving to Beijing to work in the legal field, where foreigners are not eligible to be licensed lawyers or participate in litigation. The California bar association has confirmed it has no record of her being licensed to practice law in California, and impersonating a lawyer is classified as a misdemeanor in the state. Questions regarding her credentials intensified after she seemingly misheard a question from the President about where she passed the bar exam, responding "When I moved to China." A watchdog group, Campaign for Accountability, has since requested an investigation by the State Bar of California. Despite the controversy, the White House has defended Zacharia, praising her qualifications.
