Homeland security adviser resigns post
Bossert had clashed with senior officials, but liked by Trump.
White House homeland security adviser Tom Bossert is leaving the Trump administration, another departure during what has been a chaotic few months of personnel changes.
Bossert, a favorite of Chief of Staff John Kelly, is leaving one day after national security adviser John Bolton began the job. Bossert was believed to be on shaky footing in the Bolton era, and he resigned two days after Michael Anton, the National Security Council spokesman, also quit.
So far this year, the president has changed his secretary of state, national security adviser, veterans affairs secretary, CIA director, chief economic adviser, staff secretary, communications director and members of his legal team.
“The president is grateful to Tom’s commitment to the safety and security of our great country,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement.
Bossert and former national security adviser H.R. McMaster feuded throughout their tenure in the White House in meetings that on occasion devolved into screaming, according to people familiar with their relationship who requested anonymity to discuss the situation. McMaster and others in the White House were particularly frustrated Bossert was slow to move forward with a strategy to both defend the United States and punish Russia for its efforts to undermine the U.S. elections.
In late February, Adm. Michael Rogers, the departing head of the National Security Agency, suggested in congressional testimony that he did not have the authorities he required from the White House to combat Russian cyber attacks. “President Putin has clearly come to the conclusion that there’s little price to pay and that therefore ‘I can continue this activity,’ ” said Rogers, who is set to retire in April. “Clearly what we have done hasn’t been enough.”
Inside the White House, many blamed Bossert for those shortcomings. “He’s a foot dragger on everything,” said a former senior U.S. official who worked with Bossert in the White House. “But that’s also how he hung on for a while in this crazy White House.”
Beyond Russia, there was widespread frustration in the White House that Bossert’s office had failed to produce formal strategies to deal with counterterrorism and cyber activities. Bossert also suffered from a confusing chain of command inside the White House. Bossert insisted he reported directly to the president and not to the national security adviser, which became a major source of frustration for McMaster. His sudden resignation suggests Bolton may be intent on ensuring Bossert’s replacement on cyber and counterterror strategy reports directly to him.
Bossert, who also served in the George W. Bush administration, wasn’t a marquee name, but he was liked by the president, senior administration officials said, and often defended Trump’s agenda in meetings and in interviews with the media.
Bossert’s most public role came during last summer’s hurricane season when he often appeared in the White House briefing room and on TV.
When the administration was facing heavy criticism for its response to the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico, Bossert was one of the officials put forward to defend the president.