Official State Department photo by Freddie Everett
CV NEWS FEED // President Donald Trump announced Thursday he is nominating outgoing national security adviser Mike Waltz to serve as US ambassador to the United Nations, just hours after reports surfaced that Waltz was departing from the National Security Council.
“I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations. 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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “I know he will do the same in his new role.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio will temporarily assume the duties of national security adviser while continuing to lead the State Department.
“Together, we will continue to fight tirelessly to Make America, and the World, SAFE AGAIN,” Trump added.
Waltz confirmed the news on X, stating, “I’m deeply honored to continue my service to President Trump and our great nation.”
The nomination follows weeks of speculation surrounding Waltz’s position in the wake of “Signal gate,” a security incident in which he mistakenly included Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg in a private Signal chat discussing US military plans in Yemen.
Waltz later called the mistake “embarrassing” during a Fox News interview and took “full responsibility.”
Despite public scrutiny, the White House publicly defended Waltz.
“As the president has made it very clear, Mike Waltz continues to be an important part of his national security team,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at the time. “And this case has been closed here at the White House, as far as we are concerned.”
Trump had previously nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., for the UN post but withdrew her nomination in March due to concerns about the GOP’s slim House majority.
“It was a combination of the New York corruption that we’re seeing under Kathy Hochul, special elections, and the House margin,” Stefanik explained in a March interview. “I’ve been in the House. It’s tough to count these votes every day. And we are going to continue to defy the political prognosticators and deliver, deliver victory on behalf of President Trump and, importantly, the voters across this country.”
Waltz’s appointment will now head to the Senate for confirmation.
