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Andy Baker to Leave White House in Coming Weeks

His extended stay to oversee an orderly handoff precedes a move to the private sector.

TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump looks on before signing an executive order calling for more research and flexibility on vaccines, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 10, 2026. Trump signed an executive order Monday pushing for a rethink of school vaccine mandates and repeating calls for the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine to be separated into three individual shots. Curbing vaccines has been a key priority for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who founded an anti-vaccine nonprofit and has long promoted a disproven link between immunization and autism. (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)
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The White House did not respond to a request for comment outside business hours.
Andy Baker (right, with beard) advised Vice President Vance at the Munich Security Conference in February 2025. Photo: Johannes Simon/Getty Images

Overview

  • Andy Baker, the White House deputy national security adviser, announced he will depart the administration in the coming weeks, a development first reported Friday, Aug. 14.
  • Baker served as national security adviser to Vice President JD Vance and was a central foreign policy aide for the past 18 months.
  • He took part in high-level Iran talks this year, including an April trip to Islamabad that produced a short-lived 60-day ceasefire framework.
  • Cliff Sims has already succeeded Baker as Vance’s national security adviser and Mike Needham will remain a White House deputy, with Baker saying he stayed longer than planned to ensure a smooth transition.
  • Officials praised Baker’s service, a source said he cited family reasons, and reporting says he is expected to enter the private sector to work with former national security adviser Robert O’Brien while the White House manages a broader wave of senior-staff turnover.