Trump weighs a plan for press briefings when Leavitt leaves, sources say

By Kristen Holmes, Adam Cancryn, Alayna Treene, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump is weighing relying again on a rotating cast of Cabinet officials to handle press briefings for an indefinite period following the departure of press secretary Karoline Leavitt later this month, three sources familiar with the planning told CNN.

The tentative plan comes amid a seemingly wide-open race to fill Leavitt’s role, with Trump still in the earliest stages of deciding who should take one of the White House’s most critical and visible posts. Leavitt has said she plans to vacate the position at the end of August.

The president “genuinely doesn’t know who to pick and has expressed zero urgency” on the matter, one senior White House official said.

Trump’s indecision has not slowed the jockeying among allies to promote their preferred replacement for Leavitt. Some Trumpworld hopefuls have already been in touch with junior White House staffers to ask them to put in a good word, according to a person familiar with those conversations.

Others have pressed Trump directly on behalf of potential contenders, according to another person familiar with the matter, including advocates for Elizabeth Pipko, a former model and Republican National Committee spokesperson who was considered for the press secretary job during the presidential transition.

But Trump has shown little inclination to move quickly to replace Leavitt, who is a trusted aide and is expected to remain one of his closest advisers. Inside the White House, officials laughed off much of the outside jockeying for the position, noting that ultimately one person — Trump himself — will make the choice.

Several Trump allies have been floated for the job in recent days, including Alina Habba, who briefly served as acting US attorney for the District of Columbia, and former George W. Bush aide and outspoken Trump advocate Scott Jennings. White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly and former Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin are also among the roughly dozen possible candidates seen as in the mix.

But it remains unclear what specific qualifications Trump is looking for and even whether he’ll see a need to fill the job. As Leavitt and other aides frequently note, Trump has always served as his own spokesman through his all-hours Truth Social posts and willingness to give brief interviews to those who call his personal cell phone.

The traditional press briefing schedule, meanwhile, has been sporadic throughout Trump’s second term. When Leavitt took a brief maternity leave earlier this year, other Trump officials — including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President JD Vance and Medicare and Medicaid chief Dr. Mehmet Oz — filled in, to varying levels of success. Semafor first reported on the plans to have Cabinet officials host press briefings again.

And among some of those whose names have been floated for the role, there are concerns over the demands of the job, one source with knowledge of these private conversations told CNN.

“It’s an insane job. It’s a thankless job. And now they’ll have to follow and be constantly compared to Karoline,” that source said.

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CNN’s Betsy Klein contributed to this report.