President-elect Donald Trump offered a very peculiar nomination announcement on his Truth Social platform Friday, seeming to attack the very person he appointed to a critical diplomatic role — and warning her to stay in line, even as he said she would deliver "great results" for the country.
"I am pleased to announce Morgan Ortagus as Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for Middle East Peace, to the Honorable Steven Witkoff," wrote Trump. "Early on Morgan fought me for three years, but hopefully has learned her lesson. These things usually don’t work out, but she has strong Republican support, and I’m not doing this for me, I’m doing it for them. Let’s see what happens. She will hopefully be an asset to Steve, a great leader and talent, as we seek to bring calm and prosperity to a very troubled region. I expect great results, and soon!"
Trump touted Ortagus' experience in diplomacy and national security, and said she's an active U.S. Navy Reserve intelligence officer.
"From 2019-2021, Morgan served as Spokesperson at the Department of State (Pompeo!), where she was a member of my Historic Abraham Accords team that brought unprecedented Peace to the Middle East. Earlier, she worked at the Department of the Treasury as a financial intelligence analyst and, from 2010-2011, was the Deputy U.S. Treasury Attaché to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia," he added.
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"Good luck Morgan!" he concluded.
Trump and Ortagus have had a complex relationship within the Republican political sphere. Ortagus, a former State Department spokesperson during the Trump administration, was initially endorsed by Trump for a Tennessee congressional race in 2022. However, Trump later rescinded his support when it was revealed that Ortagus had made critical comments about him in the past, criticizing his “isolationist foreign policy approach,” and calling his behavior in his personal life "disgusting."
Despite this, Ortagus has generally maintained a supportive stance towards Trump's policies and leadership — but Trump supporters have never forgiven her for her anti-Trump remarks.
Kash Patel, a hardcore Trump loyalist nominated to head up the FBI, was previously attacked by Trump supporters after being seen eating lunch with her.