WASHINGTON — A string of departures by women in senior posts in President Donald Trump's second administration has triggered debate over whether the White House applies a double standard based on gender. Women caught up in allegations or policy clashes have resigned or been dismissed, critics say, while many men in senior positions facing similar controversies have kept their jobs.
Four of the eight women appointed to Cabinet-level posts in Trump's second administration left their jobs within about three months this spring, The New York Times reported on the 14th. They were Attorney General Pam Bondi, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. The four were also the first Cabinet-level officials to depart the second Trump administration.
Bondi lost the president's confidence over her handling of documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and over politically motivated investigations that Trump had demanded. Noem's dismissal followed her congressional testimony that Trump had approved tens of millions of dollars in government advertising featuring her.
Gabbard resigned citing the need to care for her husband, but she had earlier clashed with Trump by expressing skepticism about claims that Iran's nuclear threat was imminent. Chavez-DeRemer stepped down after being engulfed in allegations of an improper relationship with a staff member and misuse of public funds.
The exodus of women from senior posts extended to diplomacy. Kimberly Guilfoyle, the U.S. ambassador to Greece, resigned on the 13th. She had come under scrutiny after The Wall Street Journal reported on financial dealings and alleged ties to Greek business figures.
Men in senior posts who have drawn criticism, by contrast, have largely remained in place. FBI Director Kash Patel has faced allegations of excessive drinking, personal use of government aircraft and deploying a SWAT team to protect his girlfriend. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick also drew scrutiny after Justice Department documents revealed he had visited Epstein's private island.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth kept his post despite criticism last year that he had exposed classified information about military operations in a chat group on a commercial messaging app. Mike Waltz, the White House national security adviser who invited a journalist into that chat group, was removed but later moved to the post of U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
In the process, the political standing of Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Republican who had originally been nominated as U.N. ambassador, was also weakened. Trump withdrew her nomination to preserve the party's narrow majority in the House, and she subsequently gave up both a run for New York governor and a bid for reelection to the House.
Kathryn Dunn Tenpas, a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, called it unusual that the first four Cabinet-level officials to leave since the administration took office were all women.
Criticism also came from Democrats. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Trump appears to fire only his female Cabinet secretaries. Rep. Jasmine Crockett likewise said Trump pushes out women faster than men who have problems.
The White House rejected the interpretation that gender played a role. Taylor Rogers, a White House spokesperson, countered that Trump judges personnel on individual merit and qualifications rather than gender.
May Mailman, director of the Independent Women's Law Center and a former Trump administration official, also stressed that women remain in key roles across the administration, citing White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.