Melania Trump arrives to take part in a wedding ceremony at the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, a suburb of Paris, November 11, 2018, as part of commemorations of the 100th anniversary of the Armistice ending the First World War.(Photo: Alain Jocard, AFP / Getty Images)

WASHINGTON – An extraordinary step for a first lady, Melania Trump, on Tuesday called for the resignation of Mira Ricardel, Assistant National Security Advisor, a person that a White House official would have never met.

"The office of the First Lady is of the opinion that she (Ricardel) no longer deserves the honor of serving at the White House," said Stephanie Grisham, director of communications for the first time woman, in a statement.

Grisham's statement comes a few minutes after an event organized in Diwali by President Donald Trump and attended by Ricardel.

Two senior administration officials said that Ricardel, appointed by National Security Advisor John Bolton this year, had run into numerous staff members, not just the first lady.

Ricardel is disputed with Melania Trump's staff about a plane seat for the first woman's recent trip to Africa, officials said. They accused Ricardel, who ended up not going to Africa, of spreading false stories about this incident.

Tuesday night, a senior White House official told USA TODAY: "Ricardel has never met the first lady." The manager added that Ricardel was one of the most senior women in the administration.

On Tuesday afternoon, officials said Ricardel had still not been fired and was still working in the White House.

The first ladies often pressure their husbands to take certain steps – perhaps especially when Nancy Reagan urged President Ronald Reagan to dismiss Chief of Staff Donald Regan in 1987 – but they normally do so in the first place. scenes.

It is unusual for a first lady to make a public statement about a staff member of the administration.

Garrett Marquis, a spokesman for the National Security Council, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

Bolton appointed Ricardel to replace him in March. She had been Under-Secretary for Arms Control in the Department of Commerce; Previously, she held many other government positions in the State Department and Congress.

NBC News also announced that the White House chief of staff, John Kelly, may be endangered, in part because he was "wrong on the side of Melania Trump" – a claim that the office of the first lady refused.

"Mrs. Trump has a very positive relationship with Chief Kelly and there has never been a problem between the two," said Grisham.

Contribute: Deirdre Shesgreen

Automatic reading

Thumbnails poster

Show captions