White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made history when she became the youngest person to take up the important role—but she has now revealed that she has paid a heavy price for cementing her status as a political heavyweight, particularly when it comes to her life at home with her husband and son.
Leavitt, 28, who wed real estate investor Nicholas Riccio, 60, in January of this year, months after they welcomed a son, Niko, together, opened up about the brutal impact her job has on her personal life, admitting that she has “PTSD about making plans” because she has been forced to cancel so many date nights in the past.
“Honestly, I have PTSD about making plans, so I just don’t,” she told the Daily Mail. “We just roll with it. If there’s a night where I happen to become free, then we take full advantage of that as a family.”
The mother of one, who hails from New Hampshire, admitted that she and Riccio had been forced to cancel three “mini weekend getaway vacations” over the summer because of “foreign policy events,” although she neglected to specify which events those were.
“But that’s part of the job, and it’s what makes it fun and challenging and keeps every day new,” she added. “And it’s, you know, it’s temporary. We’re one year down. We got three to go.”
Should Leavitt remain part of President Donald Trump‘s administration for his full four-year term, she will make history again as the first and only of his press secretaries to do so.
During his first four years in office, the president had four different press secretaries—Sean Spicer, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Stephanie Grisham, and Kayleigh McEnany—three of whom lasted less than a year in the job, with Huckabee Sanders serving for close to two years.
And while her dating life with her husband may have suffered as a result, she said that Trump and her other bosses at the White House have made sure that she is able to prioritize her role as a mother, no matter what else is going on at work.
“My priority is to always make it home for my kid’s bedtime,” she said. “I leave at a more reasonable hour than people may think, because that’s sort of the line I’ve drawn to get home and cook dinner and go through the bedtime routine and be a mom.”
Leavitt also lifted the lid on the other aspects of her daily routine, telling the publication that she usually begins press briefings at 5 a.m., although she finds time thrice weekly to carve out space for a 5:30 a.m. workout, which usually takes the form of a weight-lifting session in the White House gym.
From there, she moves to her office, where she combs through the morning’s newspapers, while watching ongoing coverage on all the major news networks, noting that she focuses her efforts largely on Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN.
Daily check-ins with the president are also essential, helping to shape the narrative that she then shares with the world’s media from the White House briefing room.
On her rare days off, Leavitt said she focuses on spending time with her husband and son at their home in Northern Virginia, and also attending church, noting that “faith is at the center of our home and our marriage and raising a child.”
Leavitt’s candid admission about her job comes just days after she shared some very intimate insight into her age-gap marriage with Riccio, who is 32 years her senior, while also opening up about her parents’ “challenging” reaction to the relationship.
During an appearance on the New York Post’s “Pod Force One” podcast, Leavitt revealed how her friendship with the real estate baron first blossomed into a romance, while insisting that the difference in age is no longer a factor in their marriage.
Host Miranda Devine began the conversation by grilling Leavitt about the “unusual” age gap between the couple, asking: “Could you not find boys your own age who are as mature?”
“Honestly? No,” the mother of one—who welcomed her son, Niko, in 2024—responded with a laugh, while conceding that the age gap between herself and her husband is “very unusual.”
She then gushed about the way in which their romance began, explaining that she met her “amazing” husband while she was campaigning for the U.S. House of Representatives in New Hampshire’s 1st District.
“We met during my congressional campaign,” Leavitt recalled. “A friend of mine who owns a restaurant is also a mutual friend of my husband’s, and he invited my husband to my event at his restaurant, and we met. We were acquainted as friends for quite some time, but then, of course, we fell in love.
“And here we are today. We’re married with a beautiful baby, and he is just an amazing guy.”
While Leavitt fell head over heels for Riccio—whom she wed in January 2025, days before Trump’s inauguration—she admitted that her parents, Bob and Erin, weren’t quite so thrilled with the relationship at first.
“It’s definitely a challenging conversation to have at first,” she said of the moment she revealed the news of her romance to her mother and father. “But then once they got to know him and saw who he is as a man and his character and how much he adores me, I think it became quite easy for them.
“And now, we’re all friends. I mean, it’s a typical family relationship. And my husband has such respect for my parents and the way that they raised me. We all have a lot of fun together when they come to visit.”
Leavitt noted that Riccio is “very introverted” and likes to remain very much behind the scenes, describing him as an “incredibly hands-on father” to their son.
Riccio’s dedication to raising Niko has been a huge support to Leavitt, who has been busy navigating the “very challenging” dynamic of balancing her career with motherhood.
That delicate balance has come with its upsides, however, including being able to introduce her son to the president, who she said has been incredibly “kind” to her family.
“He’s very good with children. He likes children,” she said. “I think he’s fascinated by them, and he’s very cute with them. He’s always very nice to my son.”
Although Riccio prefers to shy away from the spotlight, his relationship with Leavitt has faced brutal scrutiny in the months since she made her debut in the White House press room on Jan. 28.
Leavitt has previously hit back at critics of her age-gap marriage, while praising her husband for enabling her to pursue her own career, having already built up his own empire.
During a March interview with former Fox News host Megyn Kelly, the White House press secretary admitted that the age gap between herself and Riccio had initially made her reluctant to pursue a romance, but insisted that it is no longer a consideration in their marriage.
“It’s a very atypical love story, but he’s incredible. He is my greatest supporter, he’s my best friend, and he’s my rock,” she explained.
The budding political heavyweight went on to praise her husband’s success in the real estate industry, noting that the multimillion-dollar property empire he had built before they met enabled him to support her as she chased her dreams.
“He’s built a very successful business himself, so now he’s fully supportive of me building my success in my career,” she said.
“He’s the father of my child, and he’s the best dad I could ever ask for. And he is so supportive, especially during a very chaotic period of life.”
Riccio, who experienced homelessness in his youth, managed to build himself an estimated net worth of around $6 million, which he was able to use to help fund his wife’s failed campaign for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.