Donald Trump, 80, repeatedly called his 28-year-old press secretary asking when she would be back during her brief maternity leave from the White House.
Karoline Leavitt announced on Wednesday that she is quitting a post that no one younger than herself has ever held because doing it has meant she could not be “the best mom my two young children deserve.” Her daughter, Vivian, was born on May 1, and the secretary was back behind the podium roughly 11 weeks later on July 16. Her son, Niko, is 2.
Insiders told the Daily Mail that the press secretary’s exit had been building for months. One source close to Leavitt told the newspaper that “she had been strongly weighing whether to quit during maternity leave, as the president would contact her often and repeatedly ask when she was coming back.”
Another source described burnout taking hold within days of Leavitt’s return. “It was a very stressful job to do with her children. She never got any sleep, and she didn’t want her performance to slip either,” they said, adding: “The president did everything he could to keep her.”
A third person with knowledge of the press secretary’s thinking said Leavitt had realized she wanted out almost as soon as she returned to work after the birth of her daughter, and that she poured weeks into trying to find a way of breaking the news to her boss without upsetting him.
“First week back she realized she wasn’t feeling it anymore,” the Mail’s source said. “Trump really didn’t want her to leave as he actually trusts her and doesn’t like having to deal with new people in his circle when he wants to focus on getting stuff done in his time left in office.”
“She was just trying to figure out how to politely step down with his blessing,” a fourth source said.
Her decision to step down comes a little over two weeks after Leavitt spoke with the president’s daughter-in-law to explain how she was managing to do it all.
The press secretary, in comments during an appearance on Lara Trump’s Fox News show, credited her boss with making it work, saying she was grateful to him for “empowering so many working mothers and parents” at the White House.
When asked by Lara what her message would be to women who might see Leavitt as proof that they can “have it all,” Leavitt said she viewed her role as an act of public service.
“I realize it’s temporary; President Trump is only here in D.C. for four years,” she said. “It’s a small sacrifice in respect to my children’s entire lives, if you will. But it does come with a lot of prioritization.”
Even after Leavitt announced her departure, Trump continues to insist she will remain his “top outside adviser” and continue to work as an “influential voice” within the GOP ahead of what promises to be a bruising battle for control of the House and Senate at the midterms.
Her decision to throw in the towel also comes amid fresh reports about who among his aides Trump keeps closest. The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that the president slipped off Air Force One in a catering truck and onto another plane after the NATO summit hosted by Turkey earlier in May because of credible intelligence suggesting an Iranian assassination attempt.
Trump left his aides and members of the press to fly on ahead in the aircraft that appears to have been the target of that threat. Joining the president in the subterfuge were Natalie Harp, his executive assistant, along with Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino and White House aide Walt Nauta. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and a 13-member press pool stayed on what critics now refer to as the “decoy” plane.
Secret Service agents and other Trump aides have repeatedly flagged unease about the president’s closeness with Harp, the 35-year-old nicknamed the “human printer” among administration staff for her habit of printing off flattering coverage and nice online comments for him to read. Her estranged brother has called the relationship “unhealthy.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment on this story.
