Morgan Ortagus, a former State Department spokesperson, has now been appointed by President-elect Trump to serve as deputy special presidential envoy for Middle East peace during his forthcoming administration.
In his announcement, Trump acknowledged that Ortagus had previously expressed his disapproval of him.
“I am pleased to announce Morgan Ortagus as Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for Middle East Peace, to the Honorable Steven Witkoff. 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 wrote on his Truth Social Account.
“Morgan Ortagus has had experience in Diplomacy and National Security, and is 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.
She criticized Trump’s behavior as a Fox News contributor in 2016, describing it as “disgusting.” Subsequently, she served in the State Department from 2019 to 2021.
Ortagus would be the subordinate to Steven Witkoff, a real estate executive who was appointed by Trump in November to serve as a special envoy to the Middle East.
In 2022, Trump supported Ortagus’s congressional campaign; however, the Tennessee Republican Party removed her from the ballot due to her recent relocation to the state.
Ortagus served as an officer in the Navy Reserve and was employed at the Treasury Department during the administration of President Obama.
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