White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia failed the California Bar exam

The Trump administration's chief spokesperson has had a tough start. New White House press secretary Katie Zacharia’s legal credentials have come under scrutiny following reports that she failed the California bar exam.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Zacharia took, but did not pass, the California bar exam after graduating from Pepperdine University Law School in 2011. The report followed questions about her legal credentials after President Donald Trump referred to Zacharia as an attorney when he announced her appointment last week.

Zacharia appeared to acknowledge in an interview with The New York Times that she was not a licensed attorney. She said Pepperdine administrators advised her to refer to herself as a lawyer, but not to use the title “esquire” with her name or call herself an attorney.

Related: New White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia claims to have passed bar in China

A law degree and a license to practice law are separate credentials. Someone who earns a Juris Doctor, or J.D., can accurately be described as a law school graduate or J.D. holder, but the degree alone does not authorize them to practice law. The State Bar of California uses “lawyer” and “attorney” interchangeably when referring to licensed practitioners. In guidance addressing law school graduates awaiting bar results, its California Bar Journal says clients should be told that an unadmitted graduate “is not a lawyer and is not entitled to practice law.”

The Times also noted that the White House announcement described her as general counsel for Fix California, a group led by Ric Grenell, an out gay man and Trump political ally who was president of the Kennedy Center until recently. That title has also drawn scrutiny. A person familiar with her tenure told the Journal that she directed and served as the organization's point of contact for outside lawyers.

Zacharia has also come under fire for social media posts spreading vaccine conspiracy theories, sharing Russian propaganda, and appearing to endorse the baseless Pizzagate conspiracy theory that prominent Democrats operated a child sex trafficking ring. Grenell defended Zacharia after author Stephen King criticized the posts.

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“Stephen King is an intolerant. He especially hates conservative women,” Grenell posted. “His friend group must be so boring because he can’t be around anyone who thinks differently.”

Zacharia’s work with Grenell has coincided with attacks on LGBTQ+ people. In a now-deleted X post, she blamed transgender people for multiple school shootings, according to The Bulwark.

Senior administration officials also confirmed to NBC News that Zacharia failed the bar exam. The White House has defended her qualifications for the press secretary role, telling the Journal that she was not hired to work on legal matters.

Questions intensified after a reporter asked Zacharia where she had passed the bar exam, and she responded, “When I moved to China.” She later told the Times she had misheard the question. “I assumed the question was, ‘Where were you after law school?’” she said. “That’s all I could hear over the sound of Marine One.”