White House Looking at Candidates to Replace Sarah Sanders as Press Secretary

Then-White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders calls on reporters during the daily news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House Sept. 5, 2017 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

President Donald Trump said that he’s looking at a number of potential candidates to replace Sarah Sanders, who is leaving her position as White House press secretary in a few weeks.

“I have a lot of people that want it,” he said during an interview on Fox & Friends on Friday morning.

He named several people, including Stephanie Grisham, director of communications for First Lady Melania Trump, who he said was “terrific.”

He also said that he likes Anthony Scaramucci, former White House communications director, but said he should stay in his current role as a political consultant.

Grisham praised Sanders on Thursday, calling her “a true pro and a dear friend.” Multiple reports have indicated that she’s near the top of the list in terms of possible replacements.

Two sources told Fin Gomez of CBS, formerly of Fox News, that interviews could begin next week and that Grisham was a strong candidate.

“Stephanie Grisham is well-respected by the first couple and has impressed the president, according to the sources. Grisham was among the staff who worked on the president’s 2016 campaign,” Gomez noted.

Stephanie Grisham, director of communications for First Lady Melania Trump, left, with Britain's Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Michael Gove, in Buckingham Palace in London on June 3, 2019. Victoria Jones/AFP/Getty Images

“The president likes her,” a former White House official told him.

Jonathan Swan, a reporter for Axios, said that “a number of influential people close to President Trump want her in the job—and Trump has told people he likes her and trusts her.”

“Melania loves her, and she’s captured POTUS’ attention in her ability to manage news cycles and understand their philosophy,” a White House adviser told RCP. “Tough as nails, very smart.”

Emma Doyle, White House principal deputy chief of staff, and Stephanie Grisham, communications director for First Lady Melania Trump, arrive on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on March 10, 2019. Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (C) talks with incoming White House Communications Diretor Anthony Scaramucci (R) as they are accompanied by Treasury Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs Tony Sayegh during 'Regional Media Day' at the White House in Washington on July 25, 2017. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Other possible replacements included Tony Sayegh, who was spokesman for Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Steve Cortes, a pro-Trump CNN contributor, and Hogan Gidley, Sanders’s deputy press secretary, Gomez reported.

Ari Fleischer, who served as press secretary for President George W. Bush, said whoever replaces Sanders needs three things.

“They will need someone who, number one, understands President Trump, believes in President Trump, and will fight for President Trump,” he told RCP. “Number two, it would help if they found someone with a good rapport with the press corps because this is a time to make that relationship better. And number three, they better have damned thick skin.”

From NTD News