The new White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia has her first press briefing earlier this week and bombed. She managed to sort of answer three questions in 14 minutes, read from her notes with great difficulty and then, walked away. It was the kind of opening night that kills a Broadway show. Poor performances are not a problem for this White House (RFK, Jr. and Pete Kegsbreath for example), but embarrassing the boss is a problem. Now that the press are looking over her resume, they have discovered that her claim to be a “lawyer” is not as well-founded in fact as one would like. Lying on a resume is the sort of thing that gets one tossed out of any job, even one at the White House.
The facts, as the media have uncovered them, are quite clear. Ms. Zacharia graduated from Pepperdine’s Caruso Law School in 2011. Then, she took and failed the California Bar Exam. About a third of those who take it fail. It is not easy. For the next 15 years, it appears that she did nothing to pass the bar, anywhere. So, her claim to be a lawyer rests on the fact that, while not admitted to the bar anywhere, she has a law degree and therefore is a lawyer.
CNN reported,
Zacharia said in a statement she had “practiced international transactional law, with all the appropriate credentials.” She told the New York Times that she consulted with Pepperdine’s president about how to identify herself, and that she was told not to use “attorney” or “esquire,” but that “lawyer” was OK.
When it comes to international transactional law (contracts that cross international borders), there is no legal system with courts and police powers to enforce it. There really are no “appropriate credentials.” One might argue that even so, practicing this kind of law without a license is a crime.
One does not really care about the professional credentials or lack of them when it comes to the White House Press Secretary. It is a relatively unimportant job, telling the press what they could find out on their own. No amount of spin can convince the people that prices are low and luxury holidays await when they are choosing between food and medicine when they budget for the month.
What makes this story important is the way it illustrates the vetting process at the White House. Where is the Chief of Staff (or someone similarly empowered) asking questions like “and where are you licensed to practice law?” Either she lied, or she said “I am not licensed anywhere.” Neither is plausible. What is much more likely is no one asked at all. Mr. Trump said she is the new press secretary, so everyone just went along with his choice. No one did anything to protect her, the president nor the administration. Now, they have a media story that needs to go away and refuses to do so.
The intellectual laziness and irresponsibility captured here is a genetic component of both the Trump administrations. They go on instinct (“go with my gut”) and are surprised when foreseeable events scuttle their plans. This ranges from the press secretary appointment, to the trade war with Canada to the real war with Iran. There is no consideration of consequences, no anticipation of failure.
Ms. Zacharia might make it to the end of the year before being ousted. Then again, she might be gone before the end of the month. It depends on how embarrassing this becomes for the president. It is a national disgrace when the press secretary cannot be trusted to tell the truth.