In brief

• Trump says his public offer of the White House press secretary job to Dana White was a joke.
• He also said White liked the idea, while CNN reported White turned the offer down.
• The press secretary post has been vacant since October, and the two are due to meet Monday.

Trump walks back the offer

Trump said on Sunday that he had only been joking when he publicly offered the White House press secretary post to Dana White, head of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (Trump says he was ‘kidding’ about Dana White press secretary job, amid online mix-up claims – France 24) (Trump bezeichnet Sprecher-Angebot an Dana White als "Scherz" – tagesschau.de) (Trump says he was 'kidding' about Dana White press secretary offer – BBC News). Speaking to reporters in Florida, he said White was enthusiastic about the idea, though he framed the invitation as a bit of fun rather than a serious proposal (Trumpo siūlymas UFC vadovui eiti spaudos sekretoriaus pareigas buvo tik pokštas – Diena.lt). The reversal came a day after he had posted on Truth Social that he had offered White the role and urged him to take it.

Conflicting accounts

CNN reported, citing a person familiar with the matter, that White had turned the offer down (Trump tvrdí, že ponuka pre šéfa UFC bola iba žart. Dana White sa s ním napriek tomu stretne – Aktuality.sk). Trump disputed that, saying White had been excited by the idea. White himself has not publicly confirmed a refusal. On Saturday in London he declined to comment in detail and said he would have more to say after meeting Trump. The planned meeting is set for Monday at the White House, though Trump said White was coming for "other reasons".

Some online commentators suggested Trump might have confused White with a former Pentagon spokesperson of the same name. Fact-checkers found no evidence of such a mix-up.

Vacant podium

The press secretary post has been empty since October, when Katie Zacharia left after less than a week in the job. She had succeeded Karoline Leavitt, who held the role from the start of Trump's second term. White, 57, is a longtime Trump friend and has been a visible ally, including staging UFC fights on the White House grounds in June.

Open questions

It remains unclear whether the offer was ever serious. Trump has given two different descriptions within two days, and White has not said whether he will accept, decline, or take any other role. The Monday meeting is expected to be the first point at which his position becomes clear.

Read also

• Trump offers UFC chief Dana White White House press secretary job, asks Makhachev and Nurmagomedov to join as aides