US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will, in the interim, serve as National Security Advisor.
US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he will nominate Mike Waltz to be the country’s ambassador to the United Nations, following reports of his dismissal as national security adviser over a leak in a chat group.
“I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
“From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our Nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role,” the president added.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will, in the interim, serve as National Security Advisor, “while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department,” Trump stated.
‘Deeply Honored’ – Waltz
Waltz said on X that he was “deeply honored to continue my service to President Trump and our great nation.”
The announcement came hours after news reports that Waltz would be ousted from his national security adviser position amid controversy over his creation of a Signal messaging app chat group in which he inadvertently added the Editor-in-Chief of The Atlantic Magazine.
White House Admits Journalist Was Accidentally Included in Yemen War Plans Chat
In the chat, officials such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth discussed airstrikes carried out in Yemen on March 15.
“The information concerning the March airstrikes, including the timing and weapons systems used, was likely highly classified, per former and current officials,” Politico reported.
Classified Military Operations Discussed
Last month, The Atlantic published an article by editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg, in which he described his shock upon realizing he had been added to a chat where top government officials were openly discussing classified military operations.
According to Goldberg’s account, the group consisted of 18 top officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vice President J.D. Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
Leaked Messages Reveal what US Doesn’t Want You to Know about Its War Plans
Messages exchanged within the group detailed the targets, weapons, and timing of the attack, with Hegseth allegedly informing participants that the first explosions would occur at 1:45 p.m. Eastern Time.
After the strikes were carried out, participants in the chat reportedly congratulated one another, using numerous emojis.
“I could not believe that the national-security leadership of the United States would communicate on Signal about imminent war plans,” Goldberg wrote.
First Major Shake-Up
The dismissal of Waltz, the 51-year-old former Florida congressman, is the first major shake-up within Trump’s inner circle since the Republican billionaire returned to the White House about 100 days ago, Al Jazeera reported.
During his first term, Trump repeatedly dismissed and reshuffled his aides.
Now do Hegseth. pic.twitter.com/IaJO1dNelE
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) May 1, 2025
Following news of Waltz’s dismissal, Senate Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer tweeted, “Now do Hegseth.” Hegseth is under internal investigation by the Pentagon regarding the Signal leak, according to the Al Jazeera report.
(PC, AJA)
Trump surrounds himself with mindless sycophants who are only there to stroke his ego not to advise on sensible policies which are conspicuously absent. Trump is seen as a ‘transactional’ president interested only in substituting ‘deals’ for the absence of rational policies with no regard for the real-life consequences. A just and lasting peace settlement for Palestinians (or Ukrainians) cannot be trivialised into just a ‘transaction’ or ‘deal’ achieved only through bullying, bias and a loaded deck. It requires true statesmanship and political acumen, both of which are clubs that won’t be found in Trump’s golf bag!