The White House yesterday abruptly withdrew the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations amid fear her departure could weaken the Republican Party’s thin majority in the House of Representatives.
The move leaves a cabinet-level vacancy at the United Nations as the Trump administration is carrying out large-scale cuts across the world body, ending U.S. participation in the U.N. Human Rights Council and severing funding for the U.N. main agency for Palestinian refugees, or UNRWA. On Feb. 4, Trump also ordered a 180-day review of all international organizations, including the United Nations, to determine whether their activities advance U.S. interests.