CNN’s resident MAGA firebrand Scott Jennings could soon take his combative act from cable news straight to the White House briefing room.
Jennings, who has become one of the most polarizing — and frequently attacked — commentators on CNN for his relentless defense of President Donald Trump, has emerged as a frontrunner to replace outgoing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, according to the Daily Beast.
The 28-year-old press secretary said she is stepping away to spend more time with her family after giving birth to her second child in May.
Sources familiar with the situation told the outlet that Jennings’ name is at the top of the list after Leavitt stunned Washington by announcing she will leave the administration at the end of August.
Leavitt’s surprise exit leaves Trump searching for someone willing to take over one of the most visible and confrontational jobs in his administration.
And Jennings, 48, certainly knows something about confrontation.
The conservative pundit has essentially become CNN’s designated Trump defender, routinely finding himself outnumbered on panels and locked in heated arguments with the network’s other commentators.
Those clashes have made Jennings one of the network’s most divisive personalities, with critics routinely unloading on him online over everything from his defense of Trump to his treatment of fellow panelists.
Some of the confrontations have gotten downright ugly.
Jennings recently snapped, “Get your [expletive] hand out of my face,” during one heated exchange. He has also drawn backlash for making pro-Trump arguments so questionable that his own colleagues have openly challenged whether he actually believes them.
His relationship with Trump may be more complicated behind the scenes.
Jennings has reportedly been accused of privately trashing the president despite becoming one of his most dependable defenders on television.
Still, Jennings has political credentials beyond his nightly CNN battles.
He served in former President George W. Bush’s administration as a special assistant to the president and deputy director of political affairs. He also worked as an adviser to longtime Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell and helped with several of McConnell’s re-election campaigns.
Jennings did little to kill speculation about a possible move to the White House when he was confronted about the job Wednesday night on CNN’s “NewsNight.”
Instead of answering directly, he showered Leavitt with praise.
“Karoline Leavitt has been maybe the greatest White House press secretary in the last 30 years, at least,” Jennings said. “She’s been nothing short of brilliant.”
“I don’t know a single Republican in the country who isn’t in awe of and in appreciation of Karoline tonight,” he continued. “So Godspeed on your journey back to your family. You’ve done great stuff.”
Jennings never actually said whether he wanted her job.
“Let’s see, I would think Jennings would be right up there as he lies, as Leavitt lies, he protects Trump just like she did, and he spins everything to be positive for Trump when it looks like total sh–. So yeah, he may be a contender?” one viewer said. “Makes sense. We already know he’s an insufferable liar,” another person added.
“He’s already auditioning every time he turns a panel into a partisan courtroom. The podium would just give the performance a government seal,” another viewer said.
But he isn’t the only Trump loyalist whose name is circulating.
Reports name former Trump attorney Alina Habba as another strong contender. Habba became one of Trump’s most aggressive public defenders during his New York civil fraud trial, regularly appearing before cameras outside the courthouse to attack the case against him.
Deputy White House press secretary Anna Kelly is also reportedly under consideration. Kelly previously served as national press secretary for the Republican National Committee.
Other names being floated include former Arizona gubernatorial and Senate candidate Kari Lake and Katie Miller, the wife of top Trump adviser Stephen Miller. Miller previously worked for Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency and served as press secretary to Vice President Mike Pence during Trump’s first administration.
White House communications director Steven Cheung, former White House deputy chief of staff for communications Taylor Budowich and Breitbart Washington bureau chief Matthew Boyle have also reportedly surfaced as possibilities.
Prediction markets, however, are telling a slightly different story.
Kalshi listed Roma Daravi, vice president of public relations at the Kennedy Center, as the favorite to become Trump’s next press secretary, giving her a 24 percent chance.
Lara Trump, the president’s daughter-in-law, and Natalie Harp, one of Trump’s closest White House aides, were both sitting at 23 percent.
Harp recently drew attention after she reportedly accompanied Trump during his extraordinary covert departure from Turkey, when the president slipped away from Air Force One in a catering vehicle before boarding a different aircraft amid concerns about a potential Iranian assassination threat.
Habba and Kelly rounded out the prediction market’s top five at 22 percent each.
But Jennings would bring something few of the other contenders have spent years perfecting in front of a national television audience: defending Trump while taking incoming fire from virtually everyone else at the table.
If Trump ultimately picks him, one of CNN’s most combative MAGA voices could suddenly find himself on the other side of the cameras — fielding the questions instead of fighting with the people asking them.
