Sam Clovis, a White House adviser on the U.S. Department of Agriculture is leaving the department as of today. Clovis had been President Trump’s nominee to be the department’s chief scientist, but he withdrew from consideration last year.
Trump picked Clovis for the position despite him not having a background in science and that lack of experience made his nomination particularly controversial. Sources also said at the time of his withdrawal that Clovis’ nomination was imperiled as well over his connections to the ongoing Russia probe. At the time, there were questions over Clovis’ relationship with George Papadopoulos, the former Trump campaign foreign-policy adviser who has admitted to making a false statement to the FBI regarding his interactions with foreign officials close to the Russian government.
Clovis is heading back to his home state of Iowa.
