K.T. McFarland is expected to leave her position as President Donald Trump’s deputy national security adviser, according to a Sunday report by Bloomberg News.
McFarland was asked to step down from the position and will be named U.S. ambassador to Singapore, according to a report by Bloomberg’s Jennifer Jacobs citing an unnamed source familiar with White House personnel changes.
SCOOP: KT McFarland out at NSC, McMaster stamp on agency grows via @JenniferJJacobs
— Craig Gordon (@dcraiggordon) April 9, 2017
KT McFarland asked to leave National Security Council; to be named ambassador to Singapore, @JenniferJJacobs reports.
— Alex Wayne (@aawayne) April 9, 2017
On Wednesday, White House chief strategist Steve Bannon was removed from his position on the Principals Committee of the National Security Council.
Former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who left his own position after reports revealed that he spoke about sanctions in a call with Russia’s ambassador to the United States before Trump’s inauguration, brought McFarland onto Trump’s national security team.
In February, amid reports that she was expected to leave her role on Trump’s national security council, McFarland told The Hill, a day after Flynn stepped down, that Trump asked her to stay in her current position.
“I just met with the President and he asked that I stay on. I’m thrilled to do so,” she said.
That was reportedly a sticking point for Retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward, Trump’s first pick to replace Flynn as national security adviser. According to a report by CBS News, Harward refused to retain McFarland as his deputy and turned down Trump’s offer of the position after the White House resisted his demands.
