Former White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia accused Piers Morgan of trying to manufacture “gotcha” moments during a tense interview.
Morgan spoke with Zacharia on an episode of his show released Wednesday, but the discussion grew increasingly strained as he repeatedly questioned her about serving only five days as press secretary before President Trump asked her to leave the post.
Morgan asked how Zacharia reacted when Trump reportedly told her, “Was this really for you?” before dismissing her. She declined to answer, saying, “I will keep private conversations between myself and the president confidential.”
Zacharia said she would “continue fighting” for Trump and described herself as “ruthlessly loyal.” She also attempted to steer the conversation toward the upcoming midterm elections.
Morgan responded by telling Zacharia that she sounded “like a robot” and argued that answering his questions would not amount to betraying Trump’s loyalty.
“And when it comes to loyalty, he did fire you after five days. I mean, that’s what happened. He did it very nicely, but he made it clear to the world, this wasn’t gonna last much longer than five days,” Morgan said.
After the interview, Zacharia turned to X to criticize that exchange and other moments she characterized as Morgan’s failed attempts to produce “gotcha moments.”
Her post responded to a clip from the interview accompanied by the caption: “BRUTAL. JUST ABSOLUTELY BRUTAL. Perhaps the most uncomfortable interview I’ve EVER watched.”
Former White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia accused Piers Morgan of pursuing “gotcha moments” during their interview
The conversation turned tense as Morgan pressed Zacharia about losing the press secretary role after just five days
Zacharia declined to discuss her reaction to being fired and said she remains “ruthlessly loyal” to Trump
Morgan interviewed Zacharia on an episode of Piers Morgan Uncensored released Wednesday
“You can spin your bulls*** however you want,” Zacharia replied to the post.
“It was uncomfortable because Piers never got his gotcha moment despite two attempts. Changing the topics (despite denial) and not informing me Scaramucci was a guest.”
The final portion of Zacharia’s post referred to a moment roughly halfway through the interview, when Morgan introduced former White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci.
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Scaramucci served just 10 days in that position in 2017, during Trump’s first term. Morgan pointed to the unusually brief tenure as a parallel to Zacharia’s experience.
“You’ve been right where Katie is,” Morgan told Scaramucci as he joined the conversation.
Zacharia initially smiled when the former communications director appeared, but her expression changed after Morgan said: “She’s been mocked mercilessly, as you were. She’s been the laughing stock, as you were, etcetera, etcetera.”
Morgan then asked Scaramucci how he reacted to Zacharia’s dismissal and what advice he would offer her.
“I’m not here to be Katie’s life coach,” Scaramucci replied. He went on to praise her handling of the media scrutiny following her firing and gave her an “A plus” for her performance in the interview.
Zacharia also faulted Morgan for not telling her that he planned to bring on former White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci. She is pictured smiling as he joined the program
Zacharia’s expression changed as Morgan compared her experience with Scaramucci’s and said she had been “mocked mercilessly”
Scaramucci said Washington is a cutthroat environment, adding: “The shots come from inside in a job like that… You think these people in Washington are your friends, and they say nice things to you, but then they try to shiv you.”
He said he disagrees with the president on some issues but respects Zacharia’s continued support for Trump. She responded by again praising the president.
“I was able to receive the job opportunity because I was authentic with who I am, and I’m gonna leave authentic with who I am, and I am gonna continue fighting for the president because that is what I know I am called to do,” Zacharia said.
The exchange with Morgan was not Zacharia’s first uncomfortable televised interview.
On October 15, one day before she stepped down as press secretary, Fox News host Sean Hannity questioned her closely about her legal credentials during an appearance on his show.
Zacharia later told Newsmax that she had expected a friendly discussion because Hannity had previously defended her on air.
She said the interview left her “perplexed about what happened,” but added, “I never bow away from a fight or back away from a fight,” when asked whether she would appear on Hannity’s program again.
