AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File.
The White House is pulling President Donald Trump’s nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to be the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
Thursday afternoon, Semafor congressional bureau chief Burgess Everett tweeted that Sen. James Risch (R-ID), who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told him that the White House was pulling Stefanik’s nomination.
The news comes after weeks of delays for Stefanik’s confirmation hearing amid ongoing chatter about Republican woes about their razor-thin majority in the House. Earlier in the day Thursday, CBS News senior White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs had reported that Stefanik’s nomination was “in jeopardy as pressure mounts” for her to withdraw.
Stefanik has yet to resign from her congressional seat. Currently, Republicans have a 218-213 majority in the House with Stefanik included. There are a total of four vacant seats, with two seats vacant because Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-TX) and Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) died earlier this month. The other two vacant seats belonged to Florida Republicans: former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who withdrew his bid for Attorney General resigned amid a scandal involving accusations he sexually trafficked a 17-year-old girl and other activity that was the subject of a House Ethics Committee investigation, and former Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), who was confirmed as National Security Adviser and has been embroiled in the Signalgate scandal this past week.
Both Florida seats are on the ballot for a special election next week and lean heavily Republican.
Trump posted an announcement confirming he had asked Stefanik to “stay in Congress” on his Truth Social account, writing:
As we advance our America First Agenda, it is essential that we maintain EVERY Republican Seat in Congress. We must be unified to accomplish our Mission, and Elise Stefanik has been a vital part of our efforts from the very beginning. I have asked Elise, as one of my biggest Allies, to remain in Congress to help me deliver Historic Tax Cuts, GREAT Jobs, Record Economic Growth, a Secure Border, Energy Dominance, Peace Through Strength, and much more, so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat. The people love Elise and, with her, we have nothing to worry about come Election Day. There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations. Therefore, Elise will stay in Congress, rejoin the House Leadership Team, and continue to fight for our amazing American People. Speaker Johnson is thrilled! I look forward to the day when Elise is able to join my Administration in the future. She is absolutely FANTASTIC. Thank you Elise!
This is a breaking news story and has been updated.
