U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz of Florida speaks onstage during the 2024 Concordia Annual Summit at Sheraton New York Times Square on Sept. 23, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit)

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has selected U.S. House Republican Rep. Mike Waltz for the role of national security adviser, making him the second GOP lawmaker Trump has plucked from the lower chamber for his administration.

Trump announced in a statement Tuesday that Waltz, of Trump’s home state of Florida, is “hereby appointed to serve in my Cabinet,” seemingly expanding the special group beyond its traditional membership. The position does not require Senate approval.

“Mike has been a strong champion of my America First Foreign Policy agenda, and will be a tremendous champion of our pursuit of Peace through Strength!” Trump said in the statement.

Waltz, the first U.S. Army Green Beret elected to Congress, served in multiple combat tours in Afghanistan, the Middle East and Africa as a Special Forces officer, according to his congressional biography.

Waltz also worked in the Pentagon as a defense policy director under secretaries of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Robert Gates, and as a White House adviser under President George W. Bush.

The three-term House member sits on the committees on the Armed Forces and Foreign Affairs, and the Select Committee on Intelligence.

House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana praised Waltz in a statement Tuesday as a “brilliant and faithful patriot” and the “perfect person to advise President Trump and defend our interests on the world stage.”

Waltz’s office did not immediately reply to States Newsroom for comment.

Trump’s choice of Waltz now makes two current House Republicans he’s pulled from the chamber as the party anticipates a slim majority.

The president-elect announced Monday that he had chosen House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, of New York, to be his ambassador to the United Nations.

A former GOP representative from New York, Lee Zeldin, has been tapped to be the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Both positions require Senate confirmation, though Trump is mounting a pressure campaign for the yet-unnamed Republican Senate majority leader to bypass confirmation votes by allowing recess appointments.

New ambassador headed to Israel?

Trump also announced Tuesday that he wants former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to serve as his U.S. ambassador to Israel as the country continues its war campaigns in the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

“Mike has been a great public servant, Governor, and Leader in Faith for many years. He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!” Trump said in a statement.

Huckabee is the father of current Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who also worked as Trump’s press secretary during his first administration.

The Senate confirmed Biden’s most recent ambassador pick for Israel, Jacob Lew, in late October 2023, just weeks after Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on the country, killing roughly 1,200 and taking 250 hostages.

Lew’s nomination was received by the Senate on Sept. 28, 2023. The country’s previous U.S. ambassador, Thomas Nides, left the post in July 2023 for personal reasons, according to Axios.

Special envoy to Middle East named

Trump also named New York real estate investor, friend and campaign donor Steve Witkoff as his pick for special envoy to the Middle East.

The president-elect praised Witkoff in a statement emailed to the press.

“Steve is a Highly Respected Leader in Business and Philanthropy, who has made every project and community he has been involved with stronger and more prosperous. Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud,” Trump said.

Witkoff was with Trump the day a second gunman threatened him in September and told several media outlets about witnessing the U.S. Secret Service protect Trump on his Florida golf course when a gunman poked a rifle through the bushes.

Witkoff attended Trump’s hush money trial in Manhattan and also attended a high-donor fundraiser on Manhattan’s Upper East Side on May 31, the same day Trump was convicted on 34 state felonies for falsifying business records, according to ABC News.