Trump's new press secretary grilled over lawyer credentials

My president, excuse me, my husband, that's a good one. A lot has been made of the White House's new press secretary, Katie Zakaria, and her awkward debut. Where did she pass the bar exam? Which state? Though even more is being made about the conservative commentator's repeated claim to be a lawyer. It is true Zakaria studied law at Pepperdine University, but in an email the State Bar of California confirmed to CBC News, it has no record of Zakaria having been licensed to practice law in the state. On a conservative network, Zakaria admitted she sat down for the bar exam. The results are somewhat inconsequential because I knew I wouldn't need the bar in China and we left shortly thereafter. And she defended her work with a legal firm in that country. I had enough credentials, which was my law degree, to be able to do this practice. but the bigger problem is that she referred to herself as the general counsel for a conservative organization in California, says President George W. Bush's chief ethics lawyer. One does not become a lawyer in the United States until one takes the bar exam and then undergoes the character and fitness review and is sworn in as a member of the bar. So she is not a lawyer. Richard Painter signed a letter to the State Bar of California demanding investigations, citing the Business and Professions Code, noting falsely holding oneself out as a lawyer is a criminal offense punishable by fine or incarceration of up to a year in jail. There have been jokes online and on late night. I have a feeling the only bar she passed is from Dry Bar, okay? But Painter says all of this raises another serious issue. This certainly isn't a good start with respect to trustworthiness with the press. Prediction markets are rife with bets on how long Zachariah will last in the job. Katie Nicholson, CBC News, Washington.