Two top Haley aides quit, citing ‘family concerns’
US ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley has confirmed the resignations of her chief of staff and communications director. The two men cited “family concerns” as reasons for leaving.
Rumors of Communications Director Jonathan Wachtel’s departure began to make rounds on East River on Wednesday evening, soon to be joined by scuttlebutt about Chief of Staff Steven Groves.
Around 11pm local time, Haley herself confirmed the resignations in a tweet.
“Both Jonathan and Steve have recently encountered family concerns.They will always be a part of the team and dear friends,” she said.
Thanks for your concern.Both Jonathan&Steve have recently encountered family concerns.They will always be a part of the team & dear friends.
— Nikki Haley (@nikkihaley) August 10, 2017
Prior to joining Haley’s staff, Groves worked at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank based in Washington, DC. He never broke into Haley’s inner circle, which consists of aides that followed the former South Carolina governor from Columbia to New York, Politico reported citing a source “with contacts in the mission.”
Wachtel formerly reported from the UN for Fox News. His personal Twitter biography still listed him as Haley’s director of communications and spokesman for the US mission to the UN, as of Thursday morning.
It is unclear when the two resignations will take effect. RT has reached out to the US mission for comment.
The news comes on the heels of Haley’s triumph in the Security Council, which last week unanimously adopted the US-crafted resolution imposing harsh sanctions on North Korea over its continued development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile tests.
