EXCLUSIVE: Trump says ‘four or five’ people in line to replace Sarah Sanders

President Trump is considering four or five people to replace outgoing White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, he said during an exclusive Oval Office interview with The Hill. 

“Replacing Sarah is not going to be easy … a lot of people want the job,” Trump said. “We have four or five people that really want it, very good people, very good names but Sarah has done a fantastic job … she’ll be governor. She won’t talk to us anymore.” 

Trump declared that Sanders is “irreplaceable.” 

{mosads}Sanders interjected that “he’ll move on” and quipped “that would never happen” when Trump joked that she would not speak to him anymore after running for governor. 

The president did not name any possible replacements, but hose reportedly in the running include Stephanie Grisham, the first lady’s deputy chief of staff and communications director; deputy White House press secretary Hogan Gidley and former State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert.

Trump announced earlier this month Sanders would be leaving the White House after serving as press secretary for two years. She had previously served as a top deputy in the press office since Trump’s inauguration.

“If we could get her to run for governor of Arkansas, I think she’ll do very well. I’m trying to get her to do that,” Trump said at an event immediately after the announcement.

Pressed Monday on whether Sanders had Trump’s formal endorsement in the Arkansas governor’s race Trump declared, “If she runs for governor she would have my endorsement. I don’t know that she’s gonna run, but I think she should. She’s very popular.”