'Should we keep her?': Donald Trump says Karoline Leavitt doing a 'bad job'

Speculations about White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt losing her job made their way into social media feeds after President Donald Trump, in an interaction with reporters, suggested that she might be the reason behind his bad ratings. "I got 93% bad publicity, some people say 97, but between 93 and 97...maybe Karoline's doing a poor job, I don't know," President Trump said.

The President's remarks, made during a White House press interaction on Tuesday, were, however, interpreted as a joke. After questioning whether the administration should keep Leavitt, President Trump quickly added, "I think we'll keep her." This is not the first time the President has used humor to reference the youngest-ever White House Press Secretary. In a separate interaction with reporters aboard Air Force One during a period of turbulence, Trump quipped, "I'm looking for something to grab, and it's not going to be Karoline."

Trump follows his lighthearted jab at Leavitt with a strong criticism of the American media. He specifically targeted outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post, accusing them of spreading "fake news" and being fundamentally dishonest. "Washington Post is almost extinct. The papers that are being dishonest, the papers generally, people don't believe the media," Trump said. "When you get 93% to 97% bad stories, bad press, and you win in a landslide, you know what that says? People don't believe the press. And when people don't believe the press, that's a very bad thing for our country." 

However, the President's complaints about publicity come at a time of mounting domestic pressure. According to recent polling data, Trump's approval ratings have seen a significant drop compared to his first term, currently sitting at an overall 35%. Trump's decision to start a war in the Middle East has also not gone down well with American voters. One month into the war in Iran, a CNN report indicates that two-thirds of Americans disapprove of U.S. actions in the Middle East, with roughly 67% of Americans believing the President lacks a clear plan for the situation in Iran.

While the President may blame his press team for the "93 to 97 per cent" negative coverage, the data suggests that public dissatisfaction is increasingly tied to the administration's handling of the ongoing Iran conflict and its impact on issues like rising gas prices. The White House maintains that the higher prices are a temporary thing that will go down once the conflict is over.