White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has announced the resignation of President Donald Trump’s Homeland Security adviser, Tom Bossert.
“The president is grateful for Tom’s commitment to the safety and security of our great country,” said Sanders.
Bossert’s resignation comes just days after an appearance on ABC’s ‘This Week’ on Sunday, during which he questioned the “timing” of Saturday’s alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria, which came only days after President Trump promised a withdrawal of US forces from the country.
“American troops aren’t going to fix the six or seven different ongoing conflicts and wars going on in the Middle East or in Syria at this stage,” he said. “We need regional partnership increased and we need US presence decreased.”
Nevertheless, Bossert said that his team had been reviewing evidence overnight since news of the apparent attack broke, adding that no possible response should be taken “off the table.”
It is unclear whether Bossert’s resignation was linked to a difference of opinion with Trump on Syria. Bossert had previously sided with the president on trade and immigration, tweeting his support for Trump’s deployment of the National Guard to the Mexican border, and his ending of border patrol’s “catch and release” policy, on Sunday.
Bossert joins the growing list of staff that have been sacked or resigned from the Trump administration. FBI Director James Comey, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus and Chief Strategist Steve Bannon are among over 20 officials who either resigned or were fired since January 2017.