President Trump says he has offered the Dana White press secretary job to the head of the UFC. He announced it on Truth Social on Saturday, Nov. 7.
Trump wrote that White “has been offered the job of Press Secretary of the United States,” according to The Hill. He called White “a violent Fighter and Warrior” and closed with a plea: “Dana, please take the job!”
The White House press secretary offer: fighters as the briefing team
Here’s where it gets interesting. Trump said he asked White to bring assistants, “even though some are not from our Country.” The names on the list: Islam Makhachev, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Justin Gaethje, Daniel Cormier, Amanda Nunes and Kayla Harris. Reuters reported the same details.
His reason, in his words: “We need these people to defend us against the Lunatic Left.” The post also included an image of White standing in the press room, per Mediaite. White has been in the White House spotlight before, when he teased a historic UFC card in Washington.
The Hill reports the White House did not immediately respond to a request to confirm the offer. It’s also unclear whether White accepted.
Why the White House press secretary job matters
It’s easy to treat this as a punchline. But the briefing room is the main daily public channel for what the administration is doing, from your taxes to your kids’ schools. The seat has been empty of a permanent briefer since Karoline Leavitt left at the end of August. Her replacement, Katie Zacharia, lasted five days, and Trump said about three weeks ago that she’d be “transitioning out,” according to WTVR. Leavitt landed at Fox News as a contributor on Nov. 1.
The offer also landed the same day Trump tapped Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff, per NBC News. Whoever ends up behind that lectern will face a very different West Wing.
Why a UFC chief press secretary isn’t a stretch for Trump
White is no stranger to the president’s orbit. He has run the UFC for more than two decades. He has spoken at Trump’s Republican National Convention appearances. He also organized the UFC Freedom 250 event on the White House South Lawn on June 15, a story we followed when construction fueled Trump birthday fight rumors. In May, he said he doesn’t care if his closeness to Trump has cost him business.
Still, running a fight league and running a daily press briefing are different jobs. Only one of them comes with reporters who ask follow-ups.
What it means for the Dana White press secretary offer
The stakes are concrete. The role has turned over twice in about ten weeks, and the White House has gone roughly that long without a permanent briefer. Every empty week is another stretch of questions answered by whoever happens to be standing at the lectern, or by no one.
So what should you watch? First, whether the White House confirms or walks back the offer. Second, whether White answers on the record. Third, if he says yes, how he’d handle ethics and conflict-of-interest rules while holding a UFC stake. We found no reporting on that last one yet.
Until then, the briefing room remains an open seat, and the most-watched casting call in Washington is still live.
