White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders leaving job at end of June

Sanders, one of the president’s most trusted White House aides, will leave at the end of the month, Trump says.

Sarah Sanders, white house spokeswoman
Trump has not immediately named no replacement for Sanders [File: Saul Loeb/AFP]

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders will leave her job at the end of the month.

Announcing her departure after three and a half years in the job, Trump tweeted that Sanders was “a very special person with extraordinary talents, who has done an incredible job”.

“[Sanders is] going home to the Great State of Arkansas,” he said. “I hope she decides to run for Governor of Arkansas – she would be fantastic. Sarah, thank you for a job well done!”

Trump has not immediately named a replacement for Sanders.

Sanders is one of the president’s closest and most trusted White House aides and one of the few remaining who worked on his campaign.

Sanders joined the Trump campaign in February 2016. In July 2017, she took over as the top spokeswoman for the administration.

Her tenure was marked by a breakdown in regular White House press briefings and questions about the administration’s credibility. 

The last briefing was 94 days ago, but Trump answers questions from reporters on a near-daily basis, including two extended sessions with them on Wednesday.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s revealed that Sanders admitted to investigators that she had made an unfounded claim that “countless” FBI agents had reached out to express support for Trump’s decision to fire FBI Director James Comey in May 2017.

Source: News Agencies