Trump says he offered UFC chief Dana White the White House press secretary job

In brief

• Donald Trump says he has offered the White House press secretary job to UFC head Dana White.
• Trump also asked White to bring several UFC fighters, some not American, as assistants.
• The post has been vacant since 16 October, after Katie Zacharia was pushed out five days into the job.
• White has not publicly accepted, and the offer's seriousness is unclear.

Trump makes the offer public

On Saturday, Trump announced on his Truth Social account that he had extended an offer for the press secretary role to Dana White, who runs the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He described White as a "violent Fighter and Warrior" and urged him to accept the position. ('A violent fighter and warrior': Trump offers press secretary role to UFC chief Dana White – France 24) (Trump says he offered 'violent fighter' Dana White the role of press secretary: 'Dana, please take the job!' – Business Insider) (Dana White, le patron de l’UFC et proche de Donald Trump, sollicité pour devenir porte-parole de la Maison Blanche – Le Monde)

Trump also asked White to bring several UFC fighters along as "assistants", including Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev, both from Russia, and said some of them are not American. He argued they were needed to protect the country from the "Lunatic Left". (Трамп предложил главе UFC должность в Белом доме и посоветовал ему российских бойцов в помощники – NV) (Нова “команда” Трампа: президент США запропонував двом росіянам роботу в Білому домі – TSN) (Трамп запропонував залучити росіянина до охорони Білого дому – UNIAN)

Context of the vacancy

The offer follows a short and troubled stint at the job. The post has been vacant since 16 October. (Trump požiadal šéfa MMA organizácie UFC, aby sa stal hovorcom Bieleho domu – HNonline.sk) (US-Präsident bietet UFC-Chef Dana White Job als Pressesprecher an – DER SPIEGEL)

Political backdrop

The announcement came days after a difficult midterm election for Trump's Republican Party, in which Democrats took control of both chambers of Congress and several key governorships.

White and Trump have been friends for years. White stood alongside Trump in 2024 when he won the presidential election, and Trump has attended several UFC events since returning to office. In July, White organised a UFC event on the grounds of the White House as part of the 250th anniversary celebrations. (Trump offers press secretary position to UFC head Dana White – NBCNews.com)

Unclear status

It is not clear whether the offer is genuine or part of a political campaign against the Democrats. White has not explicitly accepted, but he posted an image, possibly generated by artificial intelligence, showing himself at the lectern in the White House briefing room. Neither White nor the White House had responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.