Donald Trump has not officially chosen his next White House press secretary, but one Fox News reporter unexpectedly found herself being floated for the job while interviewing him.
Fox News correspondent Alexis McAdams asked Trump whether outgoing press secretary Karoline Leavitt was replaceable during an interview conducted in New York.
Trump immediately answered no and praised Leavitt’s performance before joking that he had discovered one potential problem with his spokesperson.
“She likes her children more than she likes Trump,” he joked, adding that he was “very concerned” about it. When McAdams followed up by asking whether he had somebody in mind to take over the White House podium, Trump turned the question back on her, according to TMZ.
Trump Turned McAdams’ Replacement Question Back on Her
The exchange came at the end of McAdams’ interview with Trump, which Fox News recorded at a Nassau County police training facility in New York on Aug. 14.
After asking whether Leavitt was replaceable, McAdams pressed Trump on whether he had someone specific in mind for the position. Trump replied, “We’ll say you. How about you?” before telling McAdams she could handle the job. He said he had “always liked” her, praised her work and noted that he did not make offers like that often.
McAdams currently works as a New York-based Fox News correspondent. Her Fox News biography says she joined the network in October 2021 after previously working for WLS-TV in Chicago and other local television stations.
Leavitt Is Leaving the White House to Focus on Her Children
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Trump’s joking reference to Leavitt’s children came only days after he announced that she would leave the White House at the end of August. Leavitt, 28, gave birth to her second child, daughter Viviana, in May and recently returned from maternity leave. She also has a 2-year-old son.
In announcing her departure, Leavitt said that since returning to work she had concluded she could not give both her two young children and the demanding press secretary role the time and attention they deserved.
Trump said he understood the decision and praised her performance, calling her one of the best White House press secretaries in the history of the office.
Reuters reported that Leavitt will remain an outside communications adviser and political operative aligned with Trump as his movement prepares for the November midterm elections.
No Official Successor Has Been Announced
The vacancy has generated speculation about who could inherit one of the most visible communications positions in Washington, but Trump’s exchange with McAdams gave no indication that she has actually entered a formal selection process.
Her background is in journalism rather than serving as a political spokesperson. Fox says McAdams covered the 2024 presidential campaign and reported from Butler, Pennsylvania, during the assassination attempt against Trump.
Leavitt, meanwhile, is scheduled to remain White House press secretary through the end of August. She became the youngest person ever appointed to the position when she took the job at 27 in January 2025.