McMahon to Step Down as Head of Small Business Administration, Join Trump Campaign

Trump: 'I knew she was good, but I didn't know she was that good'

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a press conference with Linda McMahon, head of the Small Business Administration, at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida on March 29, 2019. NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump announced March 29 that Linda McMahon would be stepping down as the head of the Small Business Administration (SBA) and joining his reelection effort.

Speaking at a press conference with McMahon at Mar-a-Lago in Florida, Trump praised the administrator, saying: “I knew she was good, but I didn’t know she was that good. She has been one of our all-time favorites.

“And she'll be leaving. She’s going to go and help us with a very, very important year and a half that we have coming up. And the reelection, as they call it. And we look forward to that.”

Trump also said that the new SBA head would be announced in the “very near future.”

“Somebody that’s really good. Somebody that we know very well, somebody that will fit in beautifully.”

McMahon and her husband, Vince, were close friends with Trump and backed his presidential run in 2016. According to a Wall Street Journal report, McMahon was a top donor to Trump’s election campaign, donating $6 million to a super PAC. According to the same report, the White House advisers considered McMahon to be a “secret weapon” for the election campaign who could help promote Trump’s pro-business policies around the country.

A few months ago, McMahon was considered a leading contender to replace Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.

“It has been an honor to serve the country in your Cabinet, and to serve the administration and the people of the United States and small businesses,” McMahon said during the press conference.

‘Walk the Walk, Talk the Talk’

During an interview with The Epoch Times in January 2018, McMahon said Trump had selected her as administrator because he wanted someone “who’s actually built a business, who can walk the walk and talk the talk.”

She said one of her first objectives as the administrator was to promote SBA’s offerings throughout the country.

“My goal for SBA, first and foremost, is to make sure that it is not the best-kept secret in the country,” McMahon said.