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You’re Reassigned! Trump Does Not Fire Key Adviser Under Fire

Mira Ricardel, deputy of National Security Adviser John Bolton, will stay in administration

President Donald Trump has reassigned, not fired, a key national security adviser. (Sarah Silbiger/CQ Roll Call file photo)
President Donald Trump has reassigned, not fired, a key national security adviser. (Sarah Silbiger/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Rather than firing a White House national security adviser that clashed with his wife, President Donald Trump instead is reassigning her.

“Mira Ricardel will continue to support the President as she departs the White House to transition to a new role within the Administration. The President is grateful for Ms. Ricardel’s continued service to the American people and her steadfast pursuit of his national security priorities,” press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said.

Ricardel is an ally of National Security Adviser John Bolton. But she reportedly argued with First Lady Melania Trump during her recent swing through Africa, and she has rankled other administration officials such as Defense Secretary James Mattis. 

The first lady asked her husband to fire Ricardel, a rare move in any White House.

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