McMaster Removes Former Flynn Ally From National Security Staff
- Cohen-Watnick caught up in controversy over ‘unmasking’
- Another NSC staff member was reportedly ousted last month
H.R. McMaster.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The White House said a National Security Council staff member caught up in a controversy over the release of intelligence material to a member of Congress is leaving his job, a signal that National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster is gaining firmer authority following the installation of John Kelly as the president’s new chief of staff.
Ezra Cohen-Watnick, 31, who led the NSC’s Intelligence directorate, was an ally and former Defense Intelligence Agency colleague of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who resigned after he misled administration officials, including Vice President Mike Pence, about his contacts with the Russian ambassador to the U.S.