Melania Trump Calls for Ouster of National Security Deputy Mira Ricardel

On Tuesday afternoon, first lady Melania Trump took the extraordinary step of publicly calling for the ouster of national security adviser John Bolton’s top deputy, Mira Ricardel. “It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that [Ricardel] no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House,” her communications director, Stephanie Grisham, said in a statement. The Wall Street Journal reported about an hour later that Ricardel had been fired from her position and escorted from the White House, but a White House official disputed that claim. The Journal reported earlier Tuesday that the first lady urged President Trump to get rid of Ricardel after the two women clashed over “seating on the plane and requests to use National Security Council resources” during the first lady’s Africa trip. The first lady’s team also told Trump they “suspect” Ricardel of being behind some of the “negative stories” that have come out about the Melania and her staff, the newspaper reported.