Trump says ‘only kidding’ about naming UFC’s Dana White as press secretary

US President Donald Trump on Sunday said he was “only kidding” when he suggested UFC CEO Dana White could become his next White House press secretary, ‌after a social media post a day earlier stirred speculation about recruiting his feisty ally and signalled a combative approach to dealing with Democrats as they prepare to take control of Congress.

Trump said White, a prominent supporter, “loves the idea” of ⁠taking the job but insisted he had not been serious about ‌the prospect, describing the suggestion as “just a little fun”.

“I will tell you, I was only kidding,” Trump ‌told reporters, explaining that he had posted photographs of prominent UFC ⁠fighters as ⁠potential assistants to White as part of the joke.

In Saturday’s post, Trump described ‌White as a “violent Fighter and Warrior” and suggested he bring several current or former UFC champions ‌to serve ‌as assistants, saying they were needed to “defend us against the ‌Lunatic Left”.

Trump said White would visit him at the White ⁠House on Monday, but added that the meeting was planned for ⁠other reasons.

The playful suggestion comes as Trump seeks to fill an actual vacancy at the podium. The president does not currently have a press secretary after briefly giving the job to Katie Zacharia, who faltered behind the lectern and in television interviews before leaving the post after five days.

The communications void comes amid a broader shake-up of top administration personnel. Trump on Friday named long-time aide Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles. Miller is widely known as the architect of the administration’s hardline immigration policies.

White, who has led the Ultimate Fighting Championship for more than two decades, has been a close Trump ally ‌and helped mobilise support ‌for his 2024 presidential campaign.

He has also appeared alongside Trump at several political events and helped bring UFC fights to the White House lawn this year.