National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster triggered a “flurry” among reporters when he was spotted on the White House grounds Friday afternoon, amid reporting that his departure is only a matter of time.
McMaster appeared twice outside the West Wing, resulting in a rush of reporters out of the adjacent White House briefing room. A pool report described the scene as a “press corps fire drill.”
“Everybody has got to leave the White House at some point,” McMaster told Tara Palmeri of ABC News, who tweeted his remarks after the first sighting.
A pool report shared word of the first spotting, shortly after White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said at the daily press briefing McMaster’s job was safe.
“Since it’s a quiet day — albeit with heightened anticipation — I will point out the flurry around National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster’s brief appearance outside the West Wing a bit ago,” wrote pool reporter Linda Feldmann of the Christian Science Monitor.
“He was escorting guests out of the West Wing entrance, near the stakeout area,” Feldmann reported, referring to a paved area just north of the West Wing where journalists are allowed to engage with passing officials, sometimes during outdoor press conferences.
Palmeri reported on Twitter that McMaster referred to Sanders’ denial Thursday that he was being fired. Sanders stood by the denial on Friday, and said she had spoken with Trump who said “it was not accurate and he had no intention of changing and they had a great working relationship.”
“Sarah set it straight yesterday. Everybody has got to leave the White House at some point,” McMaster said.
When pressed on whether he would be leaving sooner rather than later, he reportedly said, “I’m doing my job,” before returning inside the White House.
Speculation on McMaster’s fate has grown following the abrupt firing this week of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Trump and McMaster have divergent views on some policy matters, particularly regarding the Middle East, and McMaster reportedly bores Trump.
The second sighting of McMaster Friday afternoon occurred around 4:15 p.m., according a second pool report.
“McMaster popped out of the West Wing again near the stakeout area, leading to another press corps fire drill. He didn’t say anything,” the report said.
