The White House is expected to pull its nomination of Dr. Janette Nesheiwat as U.S. surgeon general just a day before she was expected to appear before the Senate for her confirmation hearing, sources told ABC News.
When announcing his intent to nominate Nesheiwat to the post in November, President Donald Trump touted her work on the front lines in New York City during the coronavirus pandemic.
Nesheiwat was a frequent Fox News medical contributor and worked as a physician at the Time Square CityMD urgent care clinic before becoming one of its medical directors.
Dr Janette Nesheiwat attends the 2023 FOX Nation Patriot Awards, Nov. 16, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Terry Wyatt/Getty Images
Bloomberg first reported the move earlier Wednesday.
The news comes as right-wing activist Laura Loomer called on the president to pick a new nominee after it came to light that Nesheiwat received her medical degree from American University of the Caribbean instead of the University of Arkansas. Loomer also criticized Nesheiwat for being pro-vaccine.
Initially, she promoted the COVID-19 vaccine, calling it “a gift from God” in a 2021 opinion piece for Fox News, but a year later, she opposed the vaccine mandates for children during an appearance on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show despite medical studies showing that the COVID-19 vaccine can greatly reduce the chance for severe symptoms, hospitalization and death from the virus for patients of all ages.
Trump praised Nesheiwat during his November announcement, calling her a “fierce advocate and strong communicator for preventive medicine and public health.”
The White House has not responded to ABC News’ requests for comment.
Nesheiwat is the sister-in-law of former national security adviser Mike Waltz, who was removed from his post last week and nominated to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Waltz came under fire after it was revealed he was part of a Signal group chat with national security team members, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in which they discussed impending military plans and inadvertently invited The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg to the chat.
Loomer also called for Waltz to be fired after the scandal.
She has become a more prominent figure in Trump’s inner circle and made recommendations to Trump on whom to fire, sources told ABC News last month.
“She makes recommendations of things and people, and sometimes I listen to those recommendations, like I do with everybody,” Trump said last month. “I listen to everybody, and then I make a decision. But I saw her yesterday. She was at the ceremony, and she is — she’ll always have something to say, usually very constructive.”
