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Agence France-Presse

US President Donald Trump withdrew right-wing firebrand Elise Stefanik as his nominee for US ambassador to the United Nations Thursday, as Republican concerns mount about holding their narrow majority in Congress.
The New York congresswoman is just the second Trump cabinet pick not to go through, after Matt Gaetz pulled out of running to be attorney general following allegations of sexual misconduct.
Stefanik is a vocal Trump ally and pro-Israel stalwart.
“With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat” in the House of Representatives, Trump said on social media.
Trump said it was “essential that we maintain EVERY Republican Seat in Congress”.
“The people love Elise and, with her, we have nothing to worry about come Election Day. There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations,” he added.
The president said he had asked Stefanik to stay in Congress and “rejoin the House leadership team,” although he did not say in what capacity.
Stefanik told Fox News that she had multiple conversations with Trump on Thursday and that she was “proud to be a leader in the House in terms of one of his top allies and that will continue to be the case”.

Republicans won both the House and Senate in the November 2024 election that returned Trump to the White House, but they have a very tight lead in the lower chamber.
They control the House by 218 seats to 213, giving them just a tiny margin and making it difficult to pass key legislation.
Two crucial special elections will be held on April 1 to fill the seats vacated by Mike Waltz, who is now Trump’s national security adviser, and Gaetz.
Stefanik has effectively been in limbo since Trump’s nomination, keeping her place in the House for a number of key votes.
A firebrand who was considered a moderate before the Trump era, Stefanik is seen as one of the most vocal supporters in Congress of both Israel and US Jewish causes.
In January, she railed against “antisemitic rot” in the United Nations as she was grilled by senators at her confirmation hearing.
She also called for UN reform to ensure its tax dollars were not “propping up entities that are counter to American interests, antisemitic, or engaging in fraud, corruption or terrorism”.
During that hearing, Stefanik noted that she voted to defund UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees.
Former US president Joe Biden halted its US funding over allegations that members were possibly involved in the October 7 Hamas attacks.
Stefanik also revealed that she agreed with far-right Israeli ministers who believe Israel has a “biblical right to the entire West Bank” – but avoided being pinned down on whether she supported Palestinian self-determination.


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Donald Trump

Trump withdraws UN envoy pick Elise Stefanik amid Congress majority fears

US congresswoman Elise Stefanik testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on her nomination to be Ambassador to the United Nations in Washington in January. Photo: AFP

US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz speaks during a meeting at the White House on Tuesday. Photo: TNS

Elise Stefanik, Trump’s UN ambassador pick, vows to counter China’s ‘significant inroads’

US congresswoman Elise Stefanik, a New York Republican, testifies in Washington on Tuesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on her nomination to be US ambassador to the United Nations. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Donald Trump’s United Nations pick Elise Stefanik is a sharp critic of the institution

Representative Elise Stefanik, Republican of New York, at a campaign event for Donald Trump in Charlottesville, Virginia, on September 21. Photo: Reuters

Trump drops vaccine critic Dave Weldon as nominee to head CDC

Former US congressman David Weldon speaks in The Villages, Florida, in May 2012. Photo: AP

Robert F. Kennedy Jnr (right), the new US Secretary of Health and Human Services, shakes hands with US President Donald Trump after a swearing in ceremony in the Oval Office in February. Photo: TNS

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United States & Canada

Republicans control the US House by a slim margin, and the departure of the firebrand congresswoman would make it even harder to pass laws


Republicans control the US House by a slim margin, and the departure of the firebrand congresswoman would make it even harder to pass laws.
