MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Another fierce loyalist of Trump steps down: White House spokeswoman Sanders

Sanders, became a national public figure in her own right, is the latest in a long line of senior advisers to leave the White House.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders, a fierce loyalist of President Donald Trump who channelled his combativeness toward the news media, will leave her job at month’s end for a possible political future in her home state of Arkansas, Trump said on Thursday.

Sanders, who has worked with Trump since the early days of his unconventional run for office and became a national public figure in her own right, is the latest in a long line of senior advisers to leave the White House.

Sanders, 36, often compared the antics of the press corps to the behavior of her three young children and had largely backed Trump’s dismissal of the news media as “the enemy of the people“. While ending her daily press briefings, she was often helpful to reporters behind the scenes.

She called the job “an honor of a lifetime” but said she was eager to spend time with her children, who are just getting out of school for the summer.

“I’ve loved every minute, even the hard minutes,” Sanders said at a White House event, called onstage by Trump to a standing ovation, her voice trembling with emotion. “I have three amazing kids and I’m going to spend a little more time with them”.

“She’s a warrior,” said Trump, who announced her departure on Twitter shortly before the event. “We’ve been through a lot together, and she’s tough, but she’s good.”

Sanders’ role had developed into that of a senior adviser and confidante of the president, one who is regularly brought into senior-level meetings.

She told reporters she had informed Trump of her decision on Thursday and that “he couldn’t have been nicer, more supportive, more understanding, more encouraging than he was”

She did nothing to squelch speculation she might someday run for governor of Arkansas, a position once held by her father, Mike Huckabee, who twice ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination, including in 2016.

“I’ve learned a long time ago never to rule anything out. I do look forward to going back home,” she told reporters.

Trump said he liked the idea. “If we can get her to run for the governor of Arkansas, I think she’ll do very well,” Trump said.

Her relationship with the press corps became particularly strained a year ago after a comedian hired by the White House Correspondents’ Association for its annual dinner mocked her appearance and penchant for spinning the truth as Sanders sat nearby at the head table.

In the months afterward, she was asked to leave a restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, because of her association with the Trump administration, a move she later said reflected more on the restaurant owners than on her.

Over time, Sanders retreated from the lectern, frustrating reporters by ending the long tradition of daily press briefings. Trump preferred to take questions himself from reporters and command the White House stage, and relegated Sanders and other staff to appearances on television to defend his policies.

Sanders’ last briefing was 94 days ago, but Trump answers questions from reporters on a near-daily basis, including two extended sessions with them on Wednesday.