Trump threatens to fire his top advisers over reported work for pro-Russian government

US President Donald Trump has threatened to fire two of his top political advisers if their reported paid work for a pro-Russian government creates a conflict of interest.

The warning followed a New York Times report that James Blair and Chris LaCivita travelled to Republika Srpska, a territory within Bosnia and Herzegovina, last week for paid work ahead of elections there.

“They are allowed to do work for others, just like all consultants in Washington, D.C. I do not have any idea who else they work for but will, on reflection, ask them and, if there’s a conflict, I will terminate them, immediately!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

According to the Times, Blair and LaCivita “were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars each through a Washington-based law firm that was retained by Republika Srpska’s government to provide counsel on voting issues”.

The two advisers said their work was for the government rather than the nationalist party that controls it.

Blair, a former White House deputy chief of staff, currently leads Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc., and oversees the president’s midterm election strategy.

LaCivita, who co-managed Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, serves as a senior adviser to MAGA Inc.

The group is spending tens of millions of dollars supporting Republican candidates ahead of November’s midterm elections.