Fear of 'narrow margins' — or spectacular loss: Why Trump might pull rug from under MAGA loyalist

27 March

When Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) first entered the U.S. House of Representatives on January 3, 2015, she had a reputation for being a traditional business-minded Republican along the lines of 2012 GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney or then-Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona). And the congressman was an outspoken Donald Trump critic during the 2016 election.

But Stefanik later gave herself a far-right MAGA makeover, becoming stridently pro-Trump and much snarkier in her criticism of Democrats. Now, during President Trump's second term, Stefanik is hoping to become U.S. ambassador to the United Nations (UN).

According to Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman, however, Trump may withdraw that nomination.

In a Thursday, March 27 post on X, formerly Twitter, Sherman reported, "The White House is considering pulling @EliseStefanik 's nomination to be ambassador to the United Nations. Or asking her to withdraw, according to sources familiar. Confirming @JenniferJJacobs The Trump administration has grown concerned about the narrow margins in the House and what it means for Trump's legislative agenda."

The New York Times Annie Karni, in response to Sherman's tweet, posted, "Stefanik has been posting a retrospective of her career in Congress on Instagram for the past 5 days, expecting to get nominated in the coming weeks."

Karni, in a separate tweet, noted, "She also gave up her spot in leadership and hasn't been seated on any subcommittees in this Congress."

If Trump does withdraw the nomination, it won't necessarily reflect displeasure with Stefanik on the president's part, but rather, concern over control of the U.S. House of Representatives — where Republicans have only a small single-digit majority under the direction of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana). For Stefanik, becoming U.S. ambassador to the UN would mean leaving Congress — and a special election for that House seat would need to be held in her district.

In a March 27 tweet, CBS News' Jennifer Jacobs reported, "Scoop: Elise Stefanik's nomination for UN ambassador is in jeopardy as pressure mounts for her to back away from the UN ambassador position, partly because Republicans hold a small majority in the US House. There are discussions being held this morning about whether she should pull her nomination as soon as today, sources told @gabrielle_ake and me. @CBSNews."

Jacobs, in a different tweet, explained, "Elise Stefanik's nomination for UN ambassador is in jeopardy as pressure mounts for her to back away from the UN ambassador position, partly because Republicans hold a small majority in the US House. There are discussions being held this morning about whether she should Show more Jennifer Jacobs @JenniferJJacobs Elise Stefanik's nomination for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is a matter of serious discussion today. US House Speaker Mike Johnson was aware of some of the conversations that took place today, sources told @gabrielle_ake and me. @EliseStefanik."

Fox News reporter Chad Pergram tweeted, "A lot of rumbling about Stefanik's nomination for UN Ambassador. There are concerns about having to nouth votes in the House for 'Big, beautiful bill.' When asked if he heard it could be pulled, (Senate Majority Leader) Thune replied 'I have not heard that. No.' Says they are still waiting to hear 'timing' from the administration."

Discussion of Trump possibly withdrawing the Stefanik nomination comes at a time when Florida is getting read to hold special elections for the U.S. House seats formerly held by ex-Rep. Matt Gaetz and ex-Rep. Mike Waltz, who is now national security adviser for the Trump Administration. Democrat Gay Valimont and Republican Jimmy Patronis are competing for Gaetz's former seat, while Democrat Josh Weil is up against Republican Randy Fine in the battle for Waltz's former seat.

On X, Business Insider's Bryan Metzger's observed, "Stefanik's district is also like 10 points less GOP-leaning than FL-1 or FL-6. If the Democratic candidates can keep next Tuesday's special elections in the single digits, Stefanik's seat (NY-21) starts looking flippable."

Aaron Fritschner, meanwhile, tweeted, "If they do this it won't be out of concern over a vacancy, New York law requires a fast turnaround on filling vacancies, as we famously saw last year. Their true concern is losing a special election in a district Trump won by 21 points. And they are right to fear such a loss!"

Fritschner also posted, "If this happens I'm going to have to find the world's tiniest violin to play for Elise Stefanik giving up her top-level leadership position in the House for a presidential appointment they later evicted her from."

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