Hope Hicks, one of President Trump’s closest advisers, is to step down as White House communications director.
The announcement came a day after she testified in front of the House Intelligence Committee, but White House sources said this was not the reason.
Ms Hicks, 29, is reported to have told colleagues she was leaving because she felt she had achieved all she could. She has worked for Mr Trump for years. She is the fourth person to serve as the president’s communications chief. On Tuesday, Ms Hicks gave a nine-hour testimony in front of the panel investigating alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Ms Hicks is reported to have admitted to the panel that she had occasionally told what amounted to “white lies” for President Trump, but she denied lying about anything relevant to the investigation.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders – who described Ms Hicks as “in a league of her own” – said it remained unclear when she would leave the administration.
Ms Hicks is reported to have told colleagues she was leaving because she felt she had accomplished all she could in the White House. Her departure will come as a major blow to Mr Trump, who said he would miss having her by his side. A former press secretary, she rose through the ranks to occupy the desk closest to the Oval Office. Ms Hicks kept a low public profile but recently found herself part of a scandal when newspapers exposed that she was in a relationship with White House staff secretary Rob Porter, who had been accused of domestic violence against past partners.
When news of the allegations against Mr Porter broke last month, it was Ms Hicks who helped draft an initial White House statement defending him.
Mr Trump was reportedly not consulted and was unimpressed with her handling of the controversy.
Ms Hicks became head of the White House communications team last August, after the abrupt firing of Anthony Scaramucci. In a statement, Mr Trump said: “Hope is outstanding and has done great work for the last three years. She is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person.
“I will miss having her by my side but when she approached me about pursuing other opportunities, I totally understood. I am sure we will work together again in the future.”
Mr Scaramucci, speaking on Fox News, said: “She’s one of the least malicious people I’ve ever met in my life. She’s dedicated, she’s charming, she’s thoughtful, at the end of the day she’s going to have an unbelievable career.”
A former campaign official quoted by Politico magazine said Ms Hicks’s departure left the White House without an expert “Trump translator”. “She knew what the president wanted and could explain it to the communications [team],” the official said.
Ms Hicks, Mr Scaramucci, Sean Spicer and Mike Dubke have all served in the role since January 2017.
The latest upheaval comes just after Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, had his White House security clearance downgraded.
On Tuesday night, the president also fired off a fierce tweet against Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
