Trump: White House counsel Don McGahn to depart in the fall

FILE - In this Aug. 24, 2018 file photo, President Donald Trump arrives to speak at the Ohio Republican Party State Dinner in Columbus, Ohio. CNN is sticking by a story casting doubt on President Donald Trump’s claim that he did not have prior knowledge of a June 2016 meeting with a Russian lawyer to get damaging information on Hillary Clinton, his Democratic rival at the time. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is tweeting that his White House counsel, Don McGahn, will be departing in the fall after the Senate confirmation vote for Judge Brett Kavanaugh to serve on the Supreme Court.

Trump praised his top White House lawyer on Wednesday, saying he has "worked with Don for a long time and truly appreciate his service!"

McGahn has played a major role in Trump's overhaul of the federal judiciary with conservative judges. And he played a prominent role in Trump's selection of Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch and the president's nomination of Kavanaugh.

McGahn has had a tumultuous tenure, marked by his threat to resign last year if Trump continued to press for the removal of Robert Mueller as the special counsel overseeing the investigation into Russian election interference.