By Lucretia Hughes Klucken
WASHINGTON — Two outspoken defenders of President Donald Trump have emerged as possible frontrunners to replace White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt when she leaves the administration at the end of August.
Alina Habba, Trump’s former personal attorney and former acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, and Matthew Boyle, Breitbart News’ Washington bureau chief, are reportedly among the leading candidates under consideration.
President Trump has not announced a successor, and a White House source told the New York Post that no final decision has been made.
Several other political officials and conservative media personalities are reportedly being discussed for the position. The early focus on Habba and Boyle, however, suggests Trump may be searching for another aggressive communicator who is prepared to confront the legacy media rather than appease it.
Whoever accepts the job will have enormous shoes to fill.
Leavitt leaving to focus on her family
Trump announced Wednesday that Leavitt will leave her position at the end of the month to spend more time with her husband and two young children.
Leavitt welcomed her second child, a daughter, in May and recently returned to the White House following maternity leave.
“The truth is since returning to the White House after the birth of my daughter, I have felt in my heart that I cannot be the best mom my two young children deserve while devoting the constant time, energy, and attention required of the White House Press Secretary,” Leavitt wrote.
She called the decision bittersweet but said she was ready to begin a new chapter.
Trump said he understood and respected her decision. He praised Leavitt as one of his most trusted aides and one of the best press secretaries in White House history.
“Karoline has been a real leader in the White House, and has done a phenomenal job fighting for Justice, Liberty, and Freedom, since 2018, including our Historic Re-Election Campaign of 2024,” Trump said.
Leavitt will remain connected to the president as a top outside adviser and influential Republican voice ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
Her departure should not be portrayed as an abandonment of the movement. It is a mother making a deeply personal decision to prioritize her children while continuing to serve her country in a different role.
That deserves respect.
Alina Habba brings courtroom fight to the briefing room
Habba became nationally recognized while defending Trump during the investigations, civil cases and criminal prosecutions that dominated the period before his return to the White House.
She regularly appeared before reporters outside courthouses, where she defended Trump in direct and forceful terms. Habba demonstrated that she was willing to face hostile questions, challenge the media’s framing and deliver the president’s message without apologizing.
After Trump returned to office, Habba served as counselor to the president before being selected as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey.
Her legal experience could become a significant advantage at a time when nearly every major administration policy faces litigation. The next press secretary will be expected to explain court decisions, executive authority, immigration enforcement, federal investigations and constitutional disputes to an often-adversarial press corps.
Habba understands both the legal and political sides of those battles.
She is also comfortable on television, understands Trump’s communication style and has already proven her loyalty during some of the most difficult periods of his political career.
Her critics would almost certainly accuse her of being too combative. But those same critics spent years treating Trump, his family, his attorneys and his supporters as legitimate targets.
The president is unlikely to select someone whose main priority is earning approval from the Washington press corps.
Matthew Boyle offers media and investigative experience
Boyle would bring a different background to the position.
As Breitbart’s Washington bureau chief, he has spent years reporting on national politics, interviewing Trump and covering the Make America Great Again movement. He is reportedly well known to the president and maintains relationships with influential administration allies.
Boyle’s supporters point to his investigative experience, understanding of the conservative media environment and familiarity with the public-relations challenges facing the Trump administration.
A journalist serving as press secretary would understand how reporters develop stories, frame questions and use anonymous sources. That experience could help the White House anticipate media narratives before they dominate the news cycle.
Boyle has never served as White House press secretary, but he knows how political media operates from the inside.
His appointment would also send a message that the Trump administration continues to value independent and conservative media organizations that were often excluded or dismissed by previous administrations.
Other names remain in the conversation
Habba and Boyle are not the only possible candidates.
Reported alternatives include White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly, former Deputy White House Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung, former Trump administration communications official Katie Miller and U.S. Chief of Protocol Monica Crowley.
CNN commentator Scott Jennings has also attracted attention as a possible contender. Jennings regularly defends conservative policies during contentious network discussions and has declined to confirm or deny interest in the job.
Some prediction markets placed Jennings among the early favorites, but betting odds are not evidence of an administration decision.
The White House has said no successor has been selected.
That point matters. Habba and Boyle may be early frontrunners according to unnamed sources, but neither has received the appointment. Until Trump makes an announcement, every list remains speculation.
Leavitt changed the White House briefing room
Leavitt became the youngest White House press secretary in American history when she assumed the role at 27.
She did not enter the briefing room seeking validation from reporters who had spent years portraying Trump and his supporters as threats to democracy.
She challenged misleading questions, confronted false premises and refused to allow reporters to disguise political arguments as objective journalism.
Leavitt also expanded access for independent journalists, podcasters, digital creators and new-media outlets. That decision weakened the traditional media’s control over who could question the administration and which voices were considered legitimate.
The corporate press did not appreciate losing its monopoly.
But millions of Americans did.
Leavitt understood that the press secretary is not employed by CNN, The New York Times or The Washington Post. The press secretary represents the president and communicates the administration’s position to the American people.
That does not eliminate the responsibility to provide truthful information. It means the White House should not allow hostile media organizations to dictate the administration’s message.
Trump needs another fighter
The next press secretary will immediately face questions about immigration enforcement, foreign conflicts, the economy, the midterm elections and dozens of investigations and legal battles.
That person must know the administration’s policies, remain composed under pressure and recognize when a reporter is seeking information versus performing for a television audience.
The job requires preparation, stamina and the courage to push back.
Habba has demonstrated that courage in front of courthouses and television cameras. Boyle has demonstrated an ability to investigate political institutions and communicate with a conservative audience. Other contenders bring their own experience inside the White House and Republican politics.
Trump must decide which qualifications matter most.
The next press secretary should not imitate Leavitt. The administration needs someone authentic enough to establish his or her own voice.
But that person must continue what Leavitt began: opening the room to new media, refusing to accept dishonest premises and speaking directly to the American people.
Karoline Leavitt proved that strength, faith, motherhood and public service can exist together. She leaves the briefing room with a record that changed how the White House communicates.
Now Trump must select someone prepared to protect that legacy—and keep fighting.
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