17 February

The US State Department says Spokesperson Heather Nauert has withdrawn her name as a possible candidate for ambassador to the United Nations.

US media is indicating that a factor behind the move is an immigrant nanny Nauert employed in the past. The department made the announcement on Saturday. Nauert, a former correspondent and anchor for the conservative Fox News Channel, has been serving as spokesperson since April 2017. She was picked by President Donald Trump last year to replace Nikki Haley as UN ambassador.

 In December, she expressed gratitude to Trump on Twitter for choosing her. But she said in a statement released on Saturday that the past two months have been "grueling" for her family and therefore it is in the best interest of her family that she withdraw from consideration. A Bloomberg article cites sources as saying in the past Nauert employed an immigrant nanny who did not have legal status to work in the US.

It pointed out that the issue could be raised at her confirmation hearing, as Trump has declared a national emergency to get funding for a wall on the border with Mexico.—NHK