Trump transition: Speaker Mike Johnson urges House Ethics Committee not to release Matt Gaetz report

President-elect Donald Trump announced Friday that he selected Karoline Leavitt, a longtime communications staffer, as his White House press secretary.

Leavitt, 27, previously served as an assistant press secretary in Trump's first administration and was the national press secretary for his reelection campaign.

"Karoline is smart, tough, and has proven to be a highly effective communicator," Trump said in a Truth Social post.

Trump announced he has chosen North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum as his interior secretary in a post on social media Friday.

The president-elect teased his pick for the position, which requires Senate confirmation, during remarks at Mar-a-Lago Thursday night.

Trump also announced that Burgum will be joining his administration as chairman of the "newly formed, and very important, National Energy Council."

The council will consist of all departments and agencies "involved in the permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation [and] transportation" of American energy, Trump said.

Burgum was seen as a possible running mate of Trump's. He was one of his busiest surrogates, campaigning for the former president and raising money for his reelection campaign.

Trump announced two new White House staffers on Friday.

Steven Cheung, who previously served as the director of strategic response in Trump's first term, will serve as director of communications in his second.

Sergio Gor, who ran the pro-Trump Super PAC Right For America, will serve as assistant to the president and director of the presidential personnel office.

"Steven Cheung and Sergio Gor have been trusted Advisors since my first Presidential Campaign in 2016, and have continued to champion America First principles throughout my First Term, all the way to our Historic Victory in 2024," Trump said in a statement. "I am thrilled to have them join my White House as we, Make America Great Again!"

House Speaker Mike Johnson said Friday he does not think the House Ethics Committee should release their report into now-former GOP Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz.

"I think it's a terrible breach of protocol and tradition and the spirit of the rules," Johnson told reporters at the U.S. Capitol.

The House Ethics Committee was investigating Gaetz over allegations of sexual misconduct and illicit drug use.

Johnson said he didn't think it was "relevant" for the public to know what's in the report.

"The rules of the House have always been that a former member is beyond the jurisdiction of the Ethics Committee," he said.

Johnson said he had not yet spoken with Ethics Committee Chair Rep. Michael Guest, R-Miss., but that he plans to.

Guest postponed a meeting the House Ethics Committee had planned for Friday morning.

Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats have called on the committee to release the report.