Trump says Dana White press secretary offer was a joke
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that he “was only kidding” when he announced a day earlier that he had offered the job of White House press secretary to Dana White, the chief executive of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Speaking to reporters on his way back to the White House from his beach club in Florida, Trump explained the premise of his joke, that if the UFC boss, who is a devoted fan of the president, took over the briefing room, flanked by six fighters, reporters “wouldn’t mess around with him so much”.
“So I was kidding, but I think Dana likes the idea, and he is a very capable guy,” Trump added. “Of course, I was kidding. And you could see that because I put all of the great fighters as his assistants, that they’re all going to come with him … It was just a little fun.”
Trump’s comments came a day after he sent out a surprise post on Truth Social saying he had offered White the job. In the post, Trump wrote: “I am pleased to announce that the Great Dana White, a violent Fighter and Warrior, has been offered the job of Press Secretary of the United States.”
Trump suggested in his post that White should bring several UFC fighters as assistants to defend against the “Lunatic Left.” He added: “Dana will be a Press Secretary like none other. Dana, please take the job!”
The position has been vacant since Katie Zacharia left the role after just five days last month. Zacharia had replaced Karoline Leavitt, who had been White House press secretary since Trump returned to office in January of last year. Leavitt announced in August that she would leave her post to spend more time with her family.
Trump said the Monday meeting with White was still on, but it was unrelated to the press secretary position. “So he’s actually coming tomorrow,” Trump said Sunday night. “Of course, I was kidding … But Dana is actually coming tomorrow, actually, for other reasons. I think he was going to be in Washington, so he’s going to come over and see me.”
Shortly after Trump posted, White posted on Instagram what appears to be an AI-generated image of himself behind the lectern in the White House briefing room, captioned, “On to the next chapter.” White also added a screenshot of Trump’s post to his Instagram Story.
Trump and White have long been friends and Trump has attended many UFC fights while he has been in the White House. White this year also organized a UFC fight on the South Lawn of the White House, an event that was part of a slate commemorating the U.S.’s 250th birthday. Many Trump administration officials and Republican lawmakers attended the fight in July.
The White House had another staff shake-up Friday, when chief of staff Susie Wiles said she would step down. Trump named longtime aide Stephen Miller as her replacement. Wiles’ departure made her the seventh woman to leave the Trump administration this year. So far, all of them have been replaced by men, except Zacharia and Leavitt, as a press secretary has not yet been named.
A spokesperson for the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
