Close Trump aide and White House communications chief resigns

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 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.

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 hav- ing her by his side. A former press secretary, she rose through the ranks to occupy the desk closest to the Oval Office.

Hicks kept a low public profile but recently found her 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 Hicks who helped draft an initial White House statement defending him. Trump was reportedly not consulted and was unimpressed with her handling of the controversy.

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.