Paolo Zampolli, a close friend and ally of President Trump’s who served as a presidential special envoy in the State Department, said on Thursday that he had left the post.
The State Department did not respond to a request for comment on Mr. Zampolli’s exit.
In a social media post, Mr. Zampolli, a former modeling agent, suggested that his exit was routine and that he was going back into the business world. But earlier on Thursday, Politico reported that a U.S. official said that Mr. Zampolli was fired and that his status “as an envoy has been terminated and he is no longer a government employee.”
Mr. Zampolli, who is said to have introduced Mr. Trump to his wife, Melania, is the second person in Mr. Trump’s orbit to leave the diplomatic service this week. His departure follows the ouster of Kimberly Guilfoyle, the U.S. ambassador to Greece and ex-fiancée of Mr. Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.
Last year, Mr. Zampolli asked a top official at Immigration and Customs Enforcement if his ex-wife, with whom he was in a custody battle over their teenage son, could be put in ICE detention. The official agreed to help, and the woman, Amanda Ungaro, was placed in ICE custody and ultimately deported. Mr. Zampolli had conveyed his belief that Ms. Ungaro’s detention would help him gain custody of their son.
Mr. Zampolli’s exit comes hours after Politico reported a feud between the special envoy and Christopher Landau, the deputy secretary of state. According to messages obtained by Politico, emails between them devolved into arguments and allegations of leaks and defamation.
Mr. Landau has previously feuded with another U.S. diplomat. Last year, Mr. Landau posted and then quickly deleted a statement attacking Matthew Whitaker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO, and criticizing the NATO military alliance as “a solution in search of a problem.” A spokeswoman for the State Department said at the time that Mr. Landau’s statement was a “casual, lighthearted remark” intended for a private exchange.
In his social media post, Mr. Zampolli said that “special envoys appointments are for one year” and that “President Trump extended it for more than six months.” He added: “Serving him and the United States has been the greatest honor of my life. I am deeply grateful to President Trump, Secretary Rubio and the entire team.”
Mr. Zampolli, 56, is known in Washington for flaunting his proximity to the Trumps. His position amounted to a largely ceremonial role in America’s diplomatic service. But the role kept him within photo-op range of the Trump family, cabinet secretaries and other prominent figures in and around the administration. He has thrown parties at a townhouse in Washington, with the walls adorned with pictures of him and the president.
His Instagram feed features posts showing him trailing behind Mrs. Trump at the United Nations, standing beside Susie Wiles, Mr. Trump’s chief of staff, and posing with his son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Mr. Zampolli and Mr. Trump were fixtures of New York City nightlife in the 1990s and, as Mr. Zampolli told The Times a decade ago, shared a common interest: “We both like beautiful things.”
CBS News also reported on Thursday that Kristi Noem, the former homeland security secretary, was no longer working as a special envoy for the Shield of the Americas and had been reassigned as a senior adviser to Mr. Landau.
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