Mike Waltz to be ousted as national security adviser: Reports

WASHINGTON —  White House national security adviser Mike Waltz is leaving the Trump administration, according to CBS and other US news outlets.

The expected departure of Waltz and his deputy, Alex Wong, comes just weeks after it was revealed that he accidentally added Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a private Signal chat where military strikes against Yemen’s Houthis were discussed among senior US officials.

Trump stood by Waltz in the immediate aftermath of what became known as Signalgate, calling him a “very good man” who “learned a lesson.”

There has been no confirmation from the White House. The National Security Council did not respond to an Al-Monitor request for comment.

Waltz would be the first major official to leave the White House since Trump took office in January. The former Republican congressman from Florida also served as senior Pentagon policy official under the Bush and Obama administrations. Waltz is also a military veteran.

He and Wong are said to have been targets of right-wing activist Laura Loomer, who successfully pushed for Trump to fire National Security Council officials perceived as disloyal to his agenda last month. On Thursday morning, Loomer wrote “SCALP” in response to her earlier X post that called for Wong to be sacked.

Several names have circulated as possible replacements for Waltz, including the NSC’s senior director for counterterrorism, Sebastian Gorka, as well as White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller and Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.

Trump cycled through four different national security advisers in his first term.

This is a developing story and will be updated.