President Donald Trump is sweating his party's white-knuckle grip on the House of Representatives, and he's pulled yet another Cabinet nomination to avoid making the GOP's legislative troubles any worse.
Trump revealed he was benching Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., on Thursday, rescinding her nomination to serve as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump called Stefanik "one of my biggest allies" before sharing that he asked her "to remain in Congress.” The GOP holds a narrow majority in the lower chamber, and that slim margin already made problems for Republican leadership in the early months of Trump's second term.
“it is essential that we maintain EVERY Republican Seat in Congress,” Trump said. “With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat. 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.”
The upstate New York seat held by Stefanik went for Trump and Stefanik by a margin of roughly 20 points in their most recent elections. Stefanik has held the seat since 2014, flipping the seat after two decades of Democratic representation in Congress.
It's not the first time that the Trump administration has expressed concerns over Stefanik vacating her seat. Tesla CEO and Trump adviser Elon Musk suggested last year that Stefanik should take a step back to keep narrow House margins intact.
Stefanik made a national name for herself thanks to attacks on university leadership during House hearings on campus antisemitism in 2023. Announcing her nomination last year, Trump said the “America First fighter” was his top choice to bring his isolationist agenda to the global body.
Stefanik joins prospective CDC head David Weldon and attorney general nominee Matt Gaetz on the list of picks pulled by Trump this term. Trump suggested he supported Stefanik retaking a House GOP leadership position, an idea Speaker Johnson cosigned shortly after the announcement.
