Skip to main content
STILL HURTING

Scott Jennings Delivers Epic Eye Roll at Mention of Lost Job

The MAGA pundit was among the favorites to succeed Karoline Leavitt, until he was snubbed.

Scott Jennings rolled his eyes and shook his head during a live broadcast when it was mentioned that he was snubbed for the White House press secretary job.

Jennings, CNN’s token conservative pundit, former Republican strategist, and friend of Donald Trump, was considered among the favorites to replace Karoline Leavitt after she left in August, but the honor went to Fox News regular Katie Zacharia.

Her first briefing, on Tuesday, was a car crash. So bad, in fact, that White House sources told CNN they can’t imagine she’ll last long. “No question we’re all missing Karoline,” one adviser said.

x

Jennings wasn't happy with the mention.

CNN / NewsNight

On the network’s Newsnight with Abby Phillip, the host questioned why “the bar is so low” to get hired into important positions in the Trump administration.

“Why can’t the president hire somebody who is qualified? Who actually knows how to speak publicly, who can handle the job?” Phillip asked, shifting the attention onto Jennings.

“It’s not like there are not people who can do that. Maybe one of them is sitting at the table today,” she said as the camera cut to the 48-year-old.

He appeared genuinely irked, shaking his head and rolling his eyes, as if he were sick of the suggestion he should have succeeded Leavitt.

Incoming White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia holds her first press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, US, October 13, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia during her first press briefing.

Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS

However, reports suggest that he did throw his hat in the ring for the job. At the end of August, not long after the 29-year-old stepped back, Jennings effectively announced his candidacy by defending Trump’s assistant Natalie Harp, 35.

In his radio show, he called Sen. Jon Ossoff a “sucker punching coward” after the Georgia Democrat name-dropped Harp in an attack on Trump.

Jennings was reportedly so pleased with himself that he then sent clips of his riposte to senior White House staffers, a source told Politico’s Playbook, sparking suggestions that he used it as an informal audition.

Across his two terms, Trump has largely chosen women as his chief press representative, with the only man being Sean Spicer, who held the job for the first six months of his first term. He was replaced by Sarah Huckabee Sanders, then Stephanie Grisham, and then Kayleigh McEnany.

Play Video

But Jennings could still have a chance. CNN reported after Zacharia’s “brutal” first briefing that President Trump will likely be unimpressed, despite his public assertion that his new blonde mouthpiece was “very good.”

The 41-year-old began her appearance by reading from a script that lavished praise on her boss. She then took questions from just three reporters before fleeing the room.

Her entire appearance at the podium barely lasted 14 minutes, during which she stumbled through her prepared remarks and accidentally said “my president” instead of “my husband.”

“The idea of not spending evenings with my kid, kids are completely unacceptable, so my president, uh, excuse me, my husband, that’s a good one, my husband is out here, is out here for the week,” she said, laughing awkwardly.

Sign in or create an account

Login dialog

Loading comments…

TRENDING NOW