Hope Hicks Returning To White House After 2-Year Hiatus

Hope Hicks, the former top West Wing aide and longtime confidante to the president, is returning to the White House roughly two years after she left. A White House official says Hicks will be working closely with Trump son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner and political director Brian Jack, and will not be a part of the communications department. 

Hicks, 31, served as a top communications aide before leaving the White House in 2018 to take a position at the Fox Corporation in California. The announcement of Hick's departure came a day after she testified before the House Judiciary Committee during the Mueller investigation. Hicks will likely begin in early March, although the timeline isn't set in stone. 

"There is no one more devoted to implementing President Trump's agenda than Hope Hicks. We are excited to have her back on the team," Kushner said in a statement.

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham added that Hicks "is one of the most talented and savvy individuals I have come across. She has always impressed me with her quiet confidence, loyalty and expertise, and I am beyond thrilled to welcome Hope back to the White House." 

Hicks, who had virtually no experience in politics before she joined the Trump campaign in its earliest days, became one of the president's closest advisers, leaving a noticeable gap when she left. The end of Hicks' tenure at the White House was muddled with controversy, as then-White House staff secretary Rob Porter was accused of abuse by his two ex-wives. Porter eventually resigned. 

Hicks admitted during congressional testimony that she told some "white lies" to defend the president. 

Hicks' return comes after the formal conclusion of two monumental investigations into the president — the Russia investigation and the impeachment saga. 

Hicks is returning to the White House out of a sense of duty and purpose, a source close to Hicks said. While she was enjoying her life in the corporate world, outside the White House, she's returning partly due to a sense of duty to this president and this administration. The former model had been considering a return over the past few months. 

First published on February 13, 2020 / 10:28 AM

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