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Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Back issues
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Trump National Security Spokesman to Depart White House

National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton announced his resignation Sunday, becoming the latest in a long line of departures from the Trump administration.

(CN) - National Security Council spokesman Michael Anton announced his resignation Sunday, becoming the latest in a long line of departures from the Trump administration.

Anton announced his intentions during an interview with Politico. The White House later said the president had spoken to Anton and wished him well.

In a statement Sunday afternoon White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders called Anton “one of the smartest and most talented individuals I’ve ever worked with.”

“He’s been more than a colleague, he is a true friend,” Sanders said. “Every day I got to work with Michael was a good day and he will be greatly missed.”

Anton’s resignation came just two days after former National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster worked his last day in the West Wing. McMaster is being replaced by John Bolton, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under President George W. Bush.

Bolton's first day on the job was Monday.

Anton, a speechwriter for former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and President George W. Bush, joined the National Security Council staff after achieving some notoriety for a series of essays and blog posts he published online under a pseudonym, Publius Decius Mus, the name of an ancient Roman counsel.

Anton contributed to the Journal of American Greatness, a blog in support of Trump’s foreign and domestic policy in 2016. in September 2016, he  authored an essay entitled “The Flight 93 Election,” which described  the rise of Donald Trump as the redemption story for the GOP.

In the same essay, Anton also compared the potential election of Trump's Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton, to that of the Sept. 11 hijacking of Flight 93.

“2016 is the Flight 93 of the election: charge the cockpit or you die. You may die anyway, you or the leader of your party, may make it into the cockpit and not know how to fly or land the plane. There are no guarantees,” Anton wrote. “Except if you don’t try, death is certain.”

To “compound the metaphor,” he continued, “a Hillary Clinton presidency is Russian roulette with a semi-auto. With Trump, at least you can spin the cylinder and take your chances.”

On Sunday, Anton said he will join the Hillsdale College’s Kirby Center in Washington, D.C. where he will be both a writer and lecturer.

“I will be forever grateful to President Trump for the opportunity to serve my country and implement his agenda,” Anton said.

Categories / Government, National, Politics

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