ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Following two years as the spokesperson for the US State Department, Heather Nauert has withdrawn from consideration to be the next ambassador to the United Nations because of family concerns.
US President Donald Trump nominated Nauert for the post, but said in a statement "the past two months have been grueling for my family and therefore it is in the best interest of my family that I withdraw my name from consideration."
She withdrew because she employed a housekeeper who was legally in the United States, but lacked a proper work visa, The New York Times reported.
Nauert formerly worked as a journalist and was known for her ability to communicate Trump's chaotic foreign policy decisions to State Department beat reporters.
She said "serving in the administration for the past two years has been one of the highest honors of my life and I will always be grateful to the President, the Secretary, and my colleagues at the State Department for their support."
Nauert had been floated by Trump as the next ambassador to the UN, but was not formally nominated for senate approval and hadn't completed the required background check.
"I wish Heather nothing but the best in all of her future endeavors and know that she will continue to be a great representative of this nation in whatever role she finds herself," stated US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Nikki Haley has served as the US ambassador to the UN in the first two years of the Trump presidency. The former governor to South Carolina is seen as a potential Republican primary challenger to Trump in 2020.
“I am grateful to President Trump and Secretary Pompeo for the trust they placed in me for considering me for the position of U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations," said Nauert.
She joins a recent slew of high-level departures from the Trump administration including Defense Secretary James Mattis, special envoy to the anti-ISIS coalition Brett McGurk, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.