Trump-Haley announcement: President praises his 'friend' as UN Ambassador says 'US is strong again' after shock resignation
Oval Office announcement comes as Nikki Haley resigns as US Ambassador to the UN
Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox
Get our free Inside Washington email
Donald Trump has accepted Nikki Haley’s resignation as the US ambassador to the United Nations, celebrating her nearly two-year tenure and inviting her back to the administration in a role of her choice after “some time off”.
It remained unclear as to why exactly the South Carolina Republican had decided to leave her post from the international body, as the politician cited her belief in “term-limits” before reaffirming her commitment to the president’s “America First” agenda. She told reporters she was not planning on running for president in 2020, and would instead campaign for Mr Trump during his re-election campaign.
The departure arrived amid a fresh scandal for the official who has largely remained unattached from the daily controversies stemming from the White House. Ethics watchdog groups like Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington have called for an investigation into her use of private planes that were reportedly at the expense of businesspersons in her home state of South Carolina.
Follow updates as they happened below.
Please allow a moment for the liveblog to load.
Donald Trump has teased a “big announcement” during an upcoming meeting in the Oval Office between he and Nikki Haley, who was expected to announce her resignation from as the US ambassador to the United Nations.
The Citizens for Responsible Ethics in Washington has called for an investigation into Nikki Haley’s use of private planes, reportedly at the expense of businesspersons from her home state of South Carolina, during her tenure as the US ambassador to the United Nations. It remains unclear as to why the ambassador and politician has decided to resign from her post.
Nikki Haley failed to confirm or deny the reports of her resignation while arriving to the White House for a visit with Donald Trump on Tuesday morning, instead smiling and waving to reporters.
The US ambassador to the United Nations was expected to announce her resignation alongside the president during an Oval Office meeting open to pool reporters on Tuesday.
Ahead of Tuesday’s high-profile meeting between Donald Trump and Nikki Haley, it appeared the president had only tweeted about his UN ambassador twice, as ThinkProgress’ Aaron Rupar noted on Twitter.
The first time was in March 2016, when he wrote, “The people of South Carolina are embarrassed by Nikki Haley!”
The second was today, when he wrote, “Big announcement with my friend Ambassador Nikki Haley in the Oval Office at 10:30am.”
Congressional and Trump administration officials told the AP that Haley plans to resign. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak on the record ahead of Trump's announcement. They did not provide a reason.
As South Carolina governor, she was outspoken in her criticism of Trump during the 2016 campaign - a stance that effectively disqualified other candidates for top administration positions.
The daughter of Indian immigrants, Haley alluded to Trump in denouncing "the siren call of the angriest voices" who disrespected America's immigrants. Trump tweeted that "The people of South Carolina are embarrassed by Nikki Haley."
AP
Donald Trump accepted Nikki Haley’s resignation during an Oval Office meeting Tuesday, encouraging the US ambassador to the United Nations to return to his administration in a different role at some point in the future, adding, “you can have your pick”.
The president said during a meeting open to pool reporters that Ms Haley had informed him of her expected departure nearly six months ago, saying that she wanted to take time off at the end of her two year tenure.
Donald Trump has said “we have a number of people who would like to do the UN job,” amid a high-profile meeting announcing Nikki Haley’s departure as the US’ top diplomat to the international agency.
The president joked that she could return to the administration and have her pick at another role she’d like to fill, after “taking some time off” at the end of the year.
Nikki Haley has said she does not intend to run for president in 2020 during a meeting announcing her departure from Donald Trump’s administration Tuesday morning.
The UN ambassador appeared to leave on excellent terms, praising the president, his daughter and son-in-law and saying “the US is strong again”.
Nikki Haley reaffirmed her commitment to Donald Trump’s administration and the “America First” agenda the president has set domestically and abroad during an Oval Office meeting announcing her departure from her role as the US ambassador to the United Nations.
The South Carolina Republican added that she would be campaigning for the president during his 2020 reelection campaign.
Donald Trump opened a meeting with Nikki Haley in the Oval Office by discussing the oncoming Hurricane Michael, expected to make landfall as a Category 3 storm near Florida’s northeast Gulf Coast.
The president than went on to discuss Ms Haley’s “successful” run as South Carolina governor before moving onto to become his US ambassador to the United Nations.
“She is a fantastic person … she also is somebody that gets it,” the president said, referring to Ms Haley.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies