Tom Bossert, U.S. President Donald Trump's top Homeland Security adviser, abruptly resigned Tuesday, the latest in a long line of senior officials to leave the Trump administration.
No reason was given for his resignation, but it came a day after staunch conservative John Bolton took over as Trump's third national security adviser in the 15 months of his presidency. Both Bloomberg News and CNN reported that Bossert was quitting at Bolton's request.
The 43-year-old Bossert had served in Trump's White House since his inauguration, a key adviser to the president on cybersecurity, who also was a prominent official in handling the government's response last year to devastating hurricanes in Texas, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
Bossert appeared often on television news talk shows to represent the Trump administration's view on terrorism threats. But he was passed over to become national security adviser in favor of Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, when Trump dismissed H.R. McMaster.
“The president is grateful for Tom’s commitment to the safety and security of our great country." White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said. "Tom led the White House’s efforts to protect the homeland from terrorist threats, strengthen our cyber defenses, and respond to an unprecedented series of natural disasters. President Trump thanks him for his patriotic service and wishes him well."
Since the start of the year, Trump has ousted his secretary of state, changed national security advisers, dismissed his veterans affairs secretary, named a new CIA director and watched as other key White House advisers departed, including his top lawyer handling Trump's response to the ongoing criminal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election.
