President Donald Trump’s homeland security adviser, Tom Bossert, will resign at the request of new National Security Adviser John Bolton, a person familiar with the matter said.
Bossert has served in the White House since Trump’s inauguration. He’s been a key adviser to the president on cybersecurity and headed up the White House’s response to major hurricanes that struck Texas, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands last year.
But he resisted a reorganization of the National Security Council last year that made him subordinate to the national security adviser, then H.R. McMaster, the person said.
Bossert, who was brought into the Trump administration by campaign adviser David Bossie, was regarded as an effective and professional figure by colleagues in the West Wing, especially after his handling of the storm response, a second person familiar with the matter said. He also had a good rapport with Trump and knew how to communicate with the president.
But he lacked the star power of other top administration officials or the military credentials of the generals Trump appointed as chief of staff and national security adviser, the person said. He was passed over to replace McMaster, further diminishing his clout.
Bossert is the second high-ranking national security official to leave the White House since Bolton began his job on Monday, following Michael Anton, a spokesman for the National Security Council. Anton’s resignation was announced on Sunday; he’ll leave the post at a future date that hasn’t been announced.
“The President is grateful for Tom’s commitment to the safety and security of our great country,” Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said. “Tom led the White House’s efforts to protect the homeland from terrorist threats, strengthen our cyber defenses, and respond to an unprecedented series of natural disasters. President Trump thanks him for his patriotic service and wishes him well.”
– Jennifer Jacobs I Shannon Pettypiece I Bloomberg
