Donald Trump has trolled those waiting on tenterhooks  for an announcement on who will replace Karoline Leavitt by posting an image declaring himself ‘The Best Press Secretary.’ 

Leavitt announced last week she is quitting the White House at the end of the month to spend more time with her family.

The Daily Mail has reported that CNN ‘black sheep’ Scott Jennings is being groomed to replace her.

But Trump appeared to joke about the speculation on his Truth Social account Thursday night, posting an AI image of himself addressing the press in the White House Briefing Room.

The image was uploaded with the caption: ‘The Best Press Secretary.’

The president posted several other images to go along with it Thursday night, including a repost of him resurrecting the Keystone XL pipeline and another that placed an outline of his face in the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

CNN political commentator and the Daily Mail columnist Jennings, 48, is being courted by Wiles after Karoline Leavitt’s shock resignation.

‘It’s his if he wants it,’ one source close to Jennings said of the press secretary job. ‘And he does.’ 

Donald Trump teased speculation at who would replace Karoline Leavitt by posting an image declaring himself ‘The Best Press Secretary

Leavitt announced last week she is quitting the White House at the end of the month to spend more time with her family

Insiders say Trump has repeatedly made clear that he would prefer that a woman replaces Leavitt despite being a fan of Jennings, a former George W Bush aide known for his fiery defenses of the president on CNN.

Former US Attorney Alina Habba is understood to have lobbied him for the job.

Semafor and CNN have reported that Trump is in no rush to replace Leavitt.

Sources have added that, while many are trying to lobby White House staffers to put their hat in the ring, only Trump is going to make the decision. 

Elizabeth Pipko, a former model and spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, is among those who have fans lobbying for her to get the job.

Trump, however, considers Leavitt a close ally and will likely still rely on her for counsel in the future. 

The Daily Mail first reported on the unorthodox approach of an array of cabinet secretaries temporarily filling in for the position, which was initially deployed while Leavitt was on maternity leave.

Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were among the cabinet officials who performed well at the White House press briefing podium while Trump’s spokesman was absent.

Insiders say Trump has repeatedly made clear that he would prefer a woman replaces Leavitt

‘It’s an insane job. It’s a thankless job. And now they’ll have to follow and be constantly compared to Karoline,’ a source said. 

A source told The Daily Mail last week that it might not be a member of Trump’s press team who is promoted to the role. 

‘They’re all great people, but my guess is that the president picks someone else outside the building,’ the source said. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House for comment. 

Trump announced Leavitt’s departure on social media Wednesday after speaking with her about the decision. She was last publicly seen with the president and his team on the Air Force One trip to Ohio for the Patriot Games on Tuesday. 

Leavitt, 28, who gave birth to a second child in May and only returned from maternity leave on July 16, admitted it was a ‘bittersweet decision.’

‘Being a mother and welcoming a new baby while working in one of the most demanding jobs in the world has been the most rewarding yet challenging season of my life, to say the least,’ Leavitt wrote on X on Wednesday.

‘The truth is since returning to the White House after the birth of my daughter, I have felt in my heart that I cannot be the best mom my two young children deserve while devoting the constant time, energy, and attention required of the White House Press Secretary – and that is why I have ultimately made the bittersweet decision to depart the White House and embark on a new chapter in my life.’

CNN commentator Scott Jennings (pictured) is considered a candidate for the job

Former US Attorney Alina Habba (pictured) is also seen as a possibility 

Trump posted on Truth Social it was ‘a decision I totally understand and respect,’ calling Leavitt ‘one of the best White House press secretaries in the history of the office.’

The president said Leavitt would remain a ‘top outside adviser’ and an ‘influential voice’ at the top of the Republican Party as the White House gears up for crunch midterm elections in November.

Leavitt has been one of Trump’s closest confidantes, attending classified briefings in the Situation Room and counseling over major crises including the Jeffrey Epstein scandal – an unusual distinction for a press secretary.

Her exit leaves a glaring hole in the White House as Trump braces for a bloodbath at the ballot box amid the Iran war and sky-high gas prices. Leavitt’s replacement remains unclear and there was no official stand-in while she was on maternity leave.

The communications team has also had its own departures as White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson left last week and director of media affairs Sonny Joy Nelson also departed earlier in the year. 

Leavitt is known for her tenacity at the podium in the White House briefing room, frequently mirroring the behavior of her boss in attacking ‘fake news’ journalists and dishing out tongue lashings to any reporter who dares to cross the administration. 

She entered Trump’s orbit in 2018 during the first administration, first as a presidential writer and then as an assistant White House press secretary.

She joined Trump’s re-election campaign as a national press secretary in 2024 and was announced as White House Press Secretary on his return to the Oval Office. 

If Leavitt does return to work, she is likely to have her pick of high-profile roles in Republican politics, conservative media and political communications. 

Leavitt has two-year-old son Niko and three-month-old daughter Vivi with her real estate developer husband Nicholas Riccio, 60, who she married in January last year.