Key points
- Several national security Officials at White House fired
- Always, we are letting go of people: Trump
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has said that he has fired “some” White House National Security Council officials, according to AP.
“Always we’re letting go of people,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he made his way to Miami on Thursday afternoon, AP reported. “People that we don’t like or people that we don’t think can do the job or people that may have loyalties to somebody else.”
ABC News reported that Gen. Timothy Haugh, who is the director of the National Security Agency and also heads United States Cyber Command, and his civilian Deputy Director Wendy Noble, were both removed from their positions.
Reuters also reported that some White House National Security Council officials have been fired or reassigned. It added that it was not clear exactly why the officials were let go.
Influence on firings
On Wednesday, Trump met right-wing theorist Laura Loomer, who privately called on the president to fire some NSC staffers, according to Reuters. The New York Times was the first to report their meeting, while Axios first reported on the NSC purge on Thursday.
AP also reported that the move comes a day after far-right activist Laura Loomer raised concerns directly to him about staff loyalty.
Trump downplayed Loomer’s influence on the firings, according to AP. But Loomer during her Oval Office conversation with Trump urged the president to purge staffers she deemed insufficiently loyal to his “Make America Great Again” agenda, according to AP.
