Sebastian Gorka, deputy assistant to President Donald Trump, offered his resignation on Friday, expressing dissatisfaction with the current direction of the Trump administration.
In a letter obtained by The Federalist, Gorka wrote that "forces that do not support the [Make America Great Again] promise are—for now—ascendant within the White House," and as a result, he could best serve Trump outside the White House:
"Regrettably, outside of yourself, the individuals who most embodied and represented the policies that will ‘Make America Great Again,’ have been internally countered, systematically removed, or undermined in recent months. This was made patently obvious as I read the text of your speech on Afghanistan this week…
"The fact that those who drafted and approved the speech removed any mention of Radical Islam or radical Islamic terrorism proves that a crucial element of your presidential campaign has been lost…
"Just as worrying, when discussing our future actions in the region, the speech listed operational objectives without ever defining the strategic victory conditions we are fighting for. This omission should seriously disturb any national security professional, and any American who is unsatisfied with the last 16 years of disastrous policy decisions which have led to thousands of Americans killed and trillions of taxpayer dollars spent in ways that have not brought security or victory."
Before joining the White House, Gorka was a contributor to Breitbart News. He made numerous, sometimes combative, appearances on behalf of the administration on cable news.
It marks the fourth Friday since July that's seen the departure of a major Trump administration official; chief strategist Steve Bannon was fired Aug. 18, Chief of Staff Reince Priebus left July 28, and Press Secretary Sean Spicer resigned July 21.
New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman tweeted that Gorka was pushed out of the White House.
two admin officials tell me Gorka was pushed out, did not resign, had been on vacation for weeks.
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) August 26, 2017
A White House statement sent out said, "Sebastian Gorka did not resign, but I can confirm he no longer works at the White House."
UPDATED 9:13 P.M.: This article was updated with Haberman's report.
UPDATED 9:31 P.M.: This article was updated with a White House statement.