During Tuesday’s White House press briefing, press secretary Karoline Leavitt took questions from a child audience in honor of the White House’s annual Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day celebration.
The attendees were invited to the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room in the West Wing, where Leavitt gave them an overview of President Donald Trump’s day before opening the floor for questions.
These kids came prepared, asking Leavitt some insightful questions, including one about Trump’s actions as a boss. “How many people has he fired?” asked a young girl in the front row.
The question elicited a laugh from some of the parents in the room, as well as Leavitt.
“Thus far, actually, we have not had anyone fired with the exception of one individual who did leave their job. But we have a great team here. So far, so good,” Leavitt answered.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt takes questions from the children of journalists and staff members during a news conference on “Take Our Sons And Daughters To Work Day” in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on May 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Leavitt took questions from the children for about 15 minutes. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)Getty Images
She did not name the person who left, but was likely referring to Mike Waltz, who was ousted as national security advisor weeks after it was revealed he added a journalist to a Signal chat being used to discuss military plans. However, after news surfaced of his departure, Trump announced plans to nominate him to be ambassador to the United Nations.
Still, Trump is notorious for giving people the boot. During his first term, the Brookings Institution, a non-profit public policy organization in Washington, D.C., noted that there was a 92 percent turnover rate for members of his executive office. This means that 60 out of his 65 senior advisers no longer held their positions at the end of the four years. About a third of these advisors (22) were promoted, the rest either resigned or resigned under pressure.
However, this data only counts each position once, meaning the actual turnover rate is much higher as there were multiple positions where people were hired, departed, and then replaced. For example, Trump shuffled through four chiefs of staff during his first term in office, with the longest-serving, John Kelly, lasting only just 17 months.
Trump’s first chief of staff, Reince Priebus, previously gave insight into what it was like to work for him. Referring to stories about chaos that consumed Trump’s early administration, he said: “Take everything you’ve heard and multiply it by 50.”
Before becoming president, Trump also gained a reputation for saying “You’re fired” on his reality business competition show, “The Apprentice.”
During the mock press briefing, another child asked Leavitt about the state of the border, which Leavitt assured was “the most secure it has ever been in the history of our country.”
Other questions focused on whether Trump likes to give hugs and his favorite foods.
In addition to the press briefing, the children also had a craft session with First Lady Melania Trump in the Kennedy Garden.
