Last week saw President Donald Trump announce that former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz will become U.N. ambassador while Secretary of State Marco Rubio will cover his old job.

While some have speculated that Waltz has been demoted, the president was quick to shoot those rumors down. 

Trump: "I didn’t lose confidence in him"

According to Fox News, Trump made his position clear when speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday evening, stating, "There was no resignation."

"I didn’t lose confidence in him," Trump said of Waltz. "He’s going to the United Nations for a reason. To me, I think it’s personally, if I had assurance for myself… I’d rather have that job than the other."

Trump explained that Rubio will serve as both secretary of state and national security adviser for six months after which a permanent replacement will be appointed.

The president was at one point asked whether White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller is being considered for the role.

President believes Waltz will "do a nice job in the new position"

"Stephen Miller at the top of the totem pole? I mean, I think he sort of indirectly already has that job… because he has a lot to say about a lot of things," Trump replied before noting that Miller is "a very valued person in the administration."

Meanwhile, Trump reiterated his support for Waltz while speaking with "Meet the Press" host Kristen Welker on Sunday.

Welker at one point suggested that moving Waltz might be "punishment" for him having mistakenly added The Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a Signal group chat in which a planned strike on Yemen was being discussed.

However, the president quickly pushed back on that assertion, stating, "No. I just think he’ll do a nice job in the new position. And I think he’ll do a very good job — knows the countries, knows leadership. And I think he’ll do a very good at the United Nations."

H.R. McMaster believes change stems from a "worldview issue"

Ret. Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster served as national security adviser during Trump's first term in office, and he argued that Waltz's replacement speaks to deeper issues.

President Trump ousting Mike Waltz as national security adviser was predicated on a "policy issue" and "worldview issue," says Ret. Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who served as NSA during Trump's first term. “But it's also an understanding of the role of the National Security Council… pic.twitter.com/jNaiAMjNyI

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) May 4, 2025

He said during an interview this past weekend with CBS News' "Face the Nation" that the move stemmed from a "policy issue" and "worldview issue."

"It seems pretty clear that President Trump is not very patient, in terms of a deliberative process these days, and this is why I think he may see the National Security Council staff as an impediment," McMaster told host Margaret Brennan.