Hope Hicks resigns as White House Communications Director

THE White House is reeling from yet another high profile resignation — and the timing of this one will arouse suspicion.

WHITE House Communications Director Hope Hicks is stepping down from the job.

Ms Hicks, one of US President Donald Trump’s closest confidants and advisers, confirmed she will be leaving the key White House role.

The New York Times, citing White House aides, said Ms Hicks told colleagues she had accomplished what she felt she could achieve in the job.

Ms Hicks was Mr Trump’s spokeswoman during the 2016 presidential campaign, and has worked for the Trump family for years.

Her resignation leaves the White House searching for its fifth communications director in just over a year.

Ms Hicks replaced the ever controversial Anthony Scaramucci, who was sacked in July after just 11 days in the job. Before him Sean Spicer and Mike Dubke both had stints in the role.

Hope Hicks in the Oval Office with Kellyanne Conway.

The news of Ms Hicks’ impending exit comes just a day after she was questioned behind closed doors for a gruelling nine hours by the House Intelligence Committee.

She admitted her job had entailed telling “white lies” for Mr Trump on occasion, but she insisted those lies were not related to the Russia investigation, according to sources who heard her testimony.

She was interviewed by the panel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election and contact between Trump’s campaign and Moscow.

While the timing of her resignation is suspicious, being so close to her testimony, New York Times White House correspondent Maggie Haberman reports Ms Hicks had been thinking about leaving for months and her departure was not related to the hearing.

Ms Hicks’ departure will not be immediate.

Hope Hicks departure is NOT about yesterday's hearing, per multiple sources. She had planned it before, had been thinking about it for months. She had informed a very small number of people prior to Hill hearing that she planned to leave.

— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) February 28, 2018

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed no timeline had been set for Hicks’ departure.

She also denied any link between her decision and her questioning by a congressional panel probing Russian meddling in the election.

Washington Post National political reporter Robert Costa said Ms Hicks’ departure represented the end of an era in President Trump’s inner circle.

Costa said Ms Hicks was more involved in his rise to power on a day-to-day basis than any other person.

The departure of Hope Hicks is the end of an era in President Trump's inner circle. Outside of family, no one has been more involved in his rise to power on a day-to-day basis. A media-driven politician's chief media strategist and gatekeeper.

— Robert Costa (@costareports) February 28, 2018

In a written statement, Mr Trump praised Ms Hicks and wished her well in her future career.

“She is as smart and thoughtful as they come, a truly great person,” Mr Trump said.

“I will miss having her by my side but when she approached me about pursuing other opportunities, I totally understood. I am sure we will work together again in the future.

Ms Hicks in turn thanked the President and the administration team.

“There are no words to adequately express my gratitude to President Trump,” she said in a statement.

“I wish the President and his administration the very best as he continues to lead our country.”

Fox News political commentator Jesse Watters said Ms Hicks had the best reputation among all the Trump administration staff and that there wasn’t anything negative about her leaked to the press.

.@JesseBWatters: “I do know that [Hope Hicks] probably had the best reputation among all of the people on the #Trump staff. You never heard anything negative about her leak in the press.” #TheFive https://t.co/oUEPEFwCv4 pic.twitter.com/XL6ai8ZSoE

— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 28, 2018

First Daughter Ivanka Trump tweeted that Ms Hicks is “loved and admired by all who know her.

“It’s with a heavy heart, but tremendous gratitude, that I wish her well in her next steps.”

Mr Scaramucci also paid tribute to his successor saying she did an incredible job.

Hope Hicks is a world class person and is going to go on to have an unbelievable career. She did an incredible job. The best is yet to come.

— Anthony Scaramucci (@Scaramucci) February 28, 2018

WHO IS HOPE HICKS?

The 29-year-old is known as “Hopie” or “Hopester” to Mr Trump while others call her the “Trump whisperer”.

The former model became close to the Trump family after she began working for a public relations company representing Ivanka’s fashion line in 2014.

Ms Hopes was earning a cool $AU223,841 a year, as much as Trump administration mouthpiece Kellyanne Conway.

Serving as a communications aid during the 2016 election, Ms Hope is no stranger to the spotlight.

As a child and teenager she appeared in Ralph Lauren campaigns and is probably most famous as the cover model for various teen-themed book covers, including Barbara Robertson’s Hourglass Adventures.

Widely regarded as press shy, Ms Hicks has travelled with the President and according to theNew York Times “held sway over what interviews he gave.”

Ms Hicks arrives to meet behind closed doors with the House Intelligence Committee, at the Capitol in Washington on Tuesday. Pictured J. Scott Applewhite/AP

TROUBLED ROLE

Ms Hicks stepped into the role during a tumultuous time for the administration.

Her predecessor Mr Scaramucci had ignited an “all-out civil war” inside the West Wing during his short stint and waged a crusade against leaders while publicly unleashing on his colleagues.

His appointment caused then White House press secretary Sean Spicer to resign in protest.

Mr Scaramucci’s expletive-filled tirade against other senior White House staffers during a phone call with the New Yorker’s Ryan Lizza where he threatened to “kill all the f***ing leakers” was said to be the tipping point for his sudden resignation.

Ms Hicks, 28, was initially hired as the interim communications director but was given the role permanently last September.

Mr Spicer wasn’t without his own controversies.

Following Mr Trump’s inauguration last January Mr Spicer launched an unprecedented assault on the media, accusing reporters of downplaying the turnout at his inauguration.

“This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period!” Mr Spicer said, blaming floor coverings for the perception that Mr Trump’s crowd drew less than Barack Obama’s swearing in.

“Photographs of the inaugural proceedings were intentionally framed in a way, one particular tweet minimised the enormous support that had gathered on the National Mall,” he said.

“This was the first time in our nation’s history that floor coverings were used to protect the grass. That had the effect of highlighting areas where people are not standing, while in years past, the grass eliminated this visual.”

An estimated 1.8 million people flooded the National Mall area in 2009 when Barack Obama was first sworn in as president, federal and local agencies estimated at the time.

Washington authorities predicted 800,000 to 900,000 would attend Mr Trump’s inauguration.

— with wires