Habba Rules Herself Out as Press Secretary
Habba Rules Herself Out as Press Secretary
The News
Alina Habba, the former acting US attorney for New Jersey and the betting favorite to replace departing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, says she isn't a candidate.
"Flattered by the Kalshi odds, but I'm not in the running for any job," Habba wrote Wednesday on X, according to the New York Post and Breitbart News.
She added: "However, if I'm getting a new one, I'd love for one of these anonymous sources to let me know first." And: "Fake news remains the undefeated champ…well…until I come at them."
The job opens at the end of August, when Leavitt leaves the White House.
Timeline
Leavitt says she is leaving the press secretary job at the end of August to spend more time with her two young children, shortly after returning from maternity leave following the birth of her daughter in May. President Trump says she will stay on as a top outside adviser, and names no replacement.
Breitbart News Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow publicly weighs in on the chances of CNN commentator Scott Jennings taking the job.
Habba, sitting atop Kalshi's prediction market for the vacancy, posts on X that she is "not in the running for any job" and dismisses the speculation as fake news.
Her odds fall and Jennings moves ahead of her on the platform, according to the New York Post.
Reactions
Habba's own answer was flat: she is flattered by the betting odds, she is not a candidate, and the anonymous sources driving the story never checked with her.
Marlow, quoted by Breitbart, framed Jennings as a plausible pick who would be giving something up to take it: "He'd have to be pretty ambitious to do it. But if he did, I think the White House would be incredibly lucky to have Scott for obvious reasons."
Leavitt, in the statement announcing her exit, said the job and motherhood could not both get what they needed from her: "Being a mother and welcoming a new baby while working in one of the most demanding jobs in the world has been the most rewarding yet challenging season of my life, to say the least. The truth is since returning to the White House after the birth of my daughter, I have felt in my heart that I cannot be the best mom my two young children deserve while devoting the constant time, energy, and attention required of the White House Press Secretary."
What's Next
Leavitt's last month in the job runs out at the end of August, and Trump has not named a successor.
The prediction market has already reshuffled around Habba's denial. The New York Post reported Habba had led Kalshi bettors at 35% before her post and fell to 24% after it, with Jennings taking the lead at 30% and White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly at 13%. Breitbart, citing Kalshi, listed Habba at 38%, Jennings at 28% and Kelly at 14%.
More
Habba became a national figure as one of Trump's defense lawyers, arguing his case on television during the criminal and civil trials before his second term. She worked in the West Wing last year as a counselor to the president before Trump made her the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey.
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