Waltz removed as National Security Adviser

This week, the first real shakeup of Trump’s top staffers took place, with National Security Adviser Mike Waltz being relieved of duty.

But, Trump is still going to keep him around, having already nominated him as the UN Ambassador.

Relieved or Promoted?

Waltz, as you may remember, was the architect behind the Signal leak to the reporter from The Atlantic.

People have been demanding a head over the incident, and Trump just gave it to them, sort of.

Trump relieved Waltz from his duties on the National Security Council, but he then turned around and nominated Waltz to replace Rep. Elise Stefanik as the UN Ambassador.

My guess is that since Waltz gave up his congressional seat to serve in the administration, Trump did not want to leave him out in the cold. He is going to try to keep him active in the administration to allow him to run for office again and save some face.

The Big Announcement

After relieving Waltz, Trump confirmed the rumors, then dropped a bit of a bombshell in terms of Waltz's replacement.

He stated, “I am pleased to announce that I will be nominating Mike Waltz to be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations. From his time in uniform on the battlefield, in Congress and, as my National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz has worked hard to put our Nation’s Interests first. I know he will do the same in his new role.

“In the interim, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as National Security Advisor, while continuing his strong leadership at the State Department.”

I don’t understand why Trump keeps giving double duty to his officials. Rubio is already busy with his duties as Secretary of State, so I have no idea how he will be to absorb this until Trump’s replacement passes through the Senate. It just seems idiotic to me.

Replacing Waltz

In addition to Waltz being replaced, his deputy, Alex Wong, was also sent packing. And while Rubio gets the “acting” nod, questions are now flying at to the permanent replacement.

Steve Witkoff is getting some hits, but I don’t see Trump going in that direction with the reviews of his negotiations with Russia. Witkoff comes off like a complete and utter idiot, so I just don’t see that happening.

Ric Grenell is a real possibility, having previously served as an ambassador for Trump as well as the former acting director of National Intelligence. I could totally see Trump tapping Grenell again, and he seems like he would be a good fit for this position, even though I personally find his qualifications a bit suspect.

Elise Stefanik, who gave up her position as UN Ambassador could be a favorite once Trump gets his legislation passed, but her consideration would likely have to do with the decision made by Governor Hochul to fill other seats (she seems to want to leave them vacant until the election). Taking all that into consideration, I think the early nod would have to go to Grenell, but I am hoping Trump finds someone better for this role.