President Donald Trump has allegedly told some of his advisers that his leading choice for the post recently vacated by Nikki Haley is State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert, sources familiar with the President’s pick said.
In such a scenario, Nauert, who met with Trump on Monday, would have to leave her current post in the department to take over from Haley, who announced last month that she would step down from the position of UN Ambassador at the end of this year.
The pick is not final, but according to the two sources, President Trump is to announce his decision as early as this week. The White House didn’t comment on the matter, but Trump said Thursday that the State Department spokeswoman was “under very serious consideration.”
“She’s excellent. She’s been with us a long time. She’s been a supporter for a long time. And she’s really excellent,” the President said. “We’ll probably make a decision next week. We have a lot of people that want the job and they’re a lot of really great people,” he added.
Among others considered for the post of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations are Ric Grennell, the U.S. ambassador to Germany, Jamie McCourt, the U.S. envoy in Paris, and Kelly Craft, the ambassador in Canada.
President Trump had said on multiple occasions that he wants a woman to fill the role. Nauert came to government from Fox News and served as State Department spokesman for both of Trump’s secretaries of state.
However, due to her lack of diplomatic experience, Nauert is likely to undergo a contentious confirmation hearing, with Democrats quizzing her on her qualifications for the post, even more so as the UN ambassador role is viewed by some as a launching point for higher-profile positions.
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