‘Only kidding’: Donald Trump says amid speculations that he offered White House press secretary job to wrong Dana White

US President Donald Trump has clarified that his social media post about offering the role of White House press secretary to Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) chief Dana White was a joke.

I was kidding: Donald Trump

“I was only kidding, but Dana loves the idea,” Trump told reporters on Sunday.

“Of course I was kidding, and you could see that because I put all of the great fighters as his assistants,” Trump said.

In his post on Truth Social, Trump had even suggested that White should bring some UFC fighters, including foreign nationals like Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov, to ‘defend us against the Lunatic Left’.

What Dana White said

Responding to Trump’s post, White, who was in London, said he would meet the US president on Monday.

“I’m sure I’ll have more to talk about after that,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of jobs already.”

Trump on Sunday said that a meeting with White was still planned for Monday.

Dana White or Dana W. White?

The development comes amid growing speculation on social media that Trump may have inadvertently offered the White House press secretary post, one of the administration’s most visible positions, to the UFC boss, while the person considered for the job was another Dana White.

Many on social media argued that Dana W. White, who had previously served as the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, may have been the one considered for the job and not the UFC CEO.

White has also previously worked for the Heritage Foundation, the Washington, DC-based conservative think tank that has heavily shaped and influenced Republican platforms and policy agendas for decades. She has also been a columnist for The Wall Street Journal and a commentator on Fox News.

Trump’s search for third White House press secretary

The role of White House press secretary has been vacant since Katie Zacharia left on October 16 after less than a week on the job, after her credentials, including her claim of having a law degree, came under scrutiny.

Karoline Leavitt, who held the post in the second Trump administration from January 2025, stepped down in late August 2026 to prioritize her family and spend time with her young children. At the age of 27, Leavitt had made history as the youngest White House Press Secretary in US.

While the White House Press Secretary’s role remains vacant, Trump has been making changes in the top order of his administration, following the midterm election results last week. The most notable being the elevation of longtime loyalist Stephen Miller as the White House Chief of Staff, replacing Susie Wiles.