Susie Wiles Accused of 'Feeding' Katie Zacharia to Sean Hannity in 'Sanctioned Hit' Before White House Press Secretary's Ouster, Sources Reveal
Susie Wiles is accused of putting Katie Zacharia in Sean Hannity's crosshairs shortly before her White House exit.
Oct. 17 2026, Published 11:20 a.m. ET
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles is accused of helping put former press secretary Katie Zacharia in the hot seat during a Sean Hannity interview shortly before her ouster.
RadarOnline.com can reveal that two sources said that Wiles and White House spokesperson Danielle Alvarez played a role in arranging the appearance.
Sean Hannity Interview Sparks 'Sanctioned Hit' Claims
One source described Sean Hannity's interview with Katie Zacharia as a 'sanctioned hit.'
Zacharia's first briefing lasted just 14 minutes, during which she read prepared remarks praising Donald Trump before taking questions from reporters.
During the briefing, she stumbled while discussing the challenge of balancing the job with raising four children and accidentally referred to Trump as her husband before correcting herself.
The backlash continued when Zacharia appeared on Hannity's Fox News program on Thursday.
The host had initially defended her against what he called the "abusively biased corrupt news media," but later pressed her about her performance.
One source told Politico the interview amounted to a "sanctioned hit," while another claimed Wiles and Alvarez had "fed" Zacharia to Hannity.
A separate administration official disputed the allegation, saying, "Susie and Sean do talk, but Susie did not need to feed her to Sean or anybody else. It's not her style."
The official added, "And Hannity wasn't the nail in her coffin; her hit [on Fox & Friends] this morning was, as well as her weird answer on being a lawyer."
White House Denies Allegations
The White House quickly rejected claimed about Susan Wiles.
White House communications director Steven Cheung rejected the claims surrounding Wiles.
"All of this breathless speculation is just that— speculation. And it's fiction that's not even creative," he told Politico. "Katie took on a very important job, and she will continue to support the President as she transitions to a new role. She is an amazing teammate and tremendous talent."
Fox News also denied that Wiles or Alvarez had arranged the interview, stating that Hannity independently chooses his guests and questions.
"Susie Wiles and Danielle Alvarez had nothing to do with the booking," the network said.
Katie Zacharia's Short-Lived White House Tenure
Katie Zacharia's time as White House press secretary lasted less than a week.
Zacharia, 41, was out as press secretary less than a week after replacing Karoline Leavitt, following a rocky first briefing on Tuesday, October 13.
President Donald Trump addressed her future on Friday, October 16.
"I said to Katie, 'You don't have to do this if you don't want to," Trump told reporters, adding that she had been treated "very rough" and "nastily" by the media.
"I said, 'Honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider,'" he added.
"Look, she has suffered over the last few days. Maybe it's not for her," the president continued. "I said, 'You want to be happy in life.' I'll do whatever she wants."
Legal Credentials Come Under Fire
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Katie Zacharia faced questions about her legal credentials after acknowledging she had never passed the bar exam.
Zacharia's professional background also became a source of controversy after questions emerged about her claims of being an attorney.
Although she graduated from Pepperdine University with a law degree in 2011, she acknowledged that she had never passed the bar exam.
When asked which state's bar examination she had passed, Zacharia twice responded, "When I moved to China."
"I assumed the question was, 'Where were you after law school?'" she explained. "That's all I could hear over the sound of Marine One."
