President Donald Trump’s deputy national security adviser is leaving the White House, officials confirmed Thursday.
Ricky Waddell “plans to step down from his position,” a spokeswoman for the White House confirmed in a statement to HuffPost.
“He will stay on board for the immediate future to help ensure a smooth and orderly transition,” according to the statement. “Dr. Waddell is highly respected and very well liked within the White House, and the United States Army. We thank him for his continued service.”
Waddell’s departure, first reported by Axios, comes about three weeks after Trump announced that H.R. McMaster was leaving his role as national security adviser.
Trump appointed John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, to replace McMaster. Bolton started his new position on Tuesday and is expected to make personnel changes, Axios reported. At least two other senior National Security Council officials have resigned since Bolton’s appointment.
Waddell, a major general for the U.S. Army Reserve, assumed his role in May 2017. His departure date has yet to be confirmed, a White House spokesperson told Axios.
Waddell is the latest Trump administration official to leave in recent months. Homeland security adviser Tom Bossert resigned Tuesday, and David Shulkin was fired as the secretary of veteran affairs on March 28.
This story has been updated with comment from the White House and with details of other departures.