Monica Crowley Backs Out Of White House Job Following Plagiarism Scandal

Republican strategist Monica Crowley, who was slated to join President-elect Donald Trump’s national security team, announced Monday that she no longer intended to be a part the incoming administration. She was recently the subject of a plagiarism scandal reported on by CNN and Politico involving her PhD thesis and subsequent book.

“After much reflection I have decided to remain in New York to pursue other opportunities and will not be taking a position in the incoming administration,” Crowley said in a statement, according to the Washington Times. “I greatly appreciate being asked to be part of President-elect Trump’s team and I will continue to enthusiastically support him and his agenda for American renewal.”

Crowley would have worked under incoming National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general, as senior director of the National Security Council’s strategic communications.

Last week, Politico Magazine reported that Crowley had plagiarized parts of her Columbia University PhD dissertation on international relations.

CNN had earlier discovered dozens of plagiarized passages in 2012 Crowley’s recent book, “What The (Bleep) Just Happened.”

After that report, the Trump transition team attempted to play down the allegations.

“Any attempt to discredit Monica is nothing more than a politically motivated attack that seeks to distract from the real issues facing this country,” a transition spokesperson told the network at the time.

“The NSC will miss the opportunity to have Monica Crowley as part of our team. We wish her all the best in her future,” Flynn said of Crowley’s decision, as quoted by the Washington Times.