On Tuesday, it was announced by a White House representative that Marty Makary, the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has stepped down after serving 13 months in the role. In the interim, Kyle Diamantis, the FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Food and Drugs, will take over as acting commissioner while the search for a permanent replacement is underway.
As President Donald Trump was preparing to leave on Air Force One for his journey to China, he took a moment to address the media. A journalist inquired, “Did you ask Marty Makary to resign, sir? Or was he dismissed from his position as FDA commissioner?”
In response, Trump stated, “Well, I don’t want to say. But Marty’s a great guy. He’s a friend of mine, he’s a wonderful man, and he’s going to be off, and the assistant—the deputy is taking over temporarily… Everybody wants that job.”
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Additionally, Trump expressed his views on Makary’s departure through his platform on Truth Social:
As President Donald Trump prepared to depart on Air Force One for his trip to China, he spoke with the press. One reporter asked, “Did you ask Marty Makary to resign, sir? Or did you fire your FDA commissioner?”
Trump responded, “Well, I don’t want to say. But Marty’s a great guy. He’s a friend of mine, he’s a wonderful man, and he’s going to be off, and the assistant—the deputy is taking over temporarily… Everybody wants that job.”
WATCH:
.@POTUS on Dr. Marty Makary leaving the FDA: “Marty’s a great guy. He’s a friend of mine, he’s a wonderful man, and he’s going to be off, and the deputy is taking over temporarily… everybody wants that job.” pic.twitter.com/Df9y7GQurO
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 12, 2026
Trump also shared his thoughts on Makary via Truth Social:
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 12, 2026
I want to thank Dr. Marty Makary for having done a great job at the FDA. So much was accomplished under his leadership. He was a hard worker, who was respected by all, and will go on to have an outstanding career in Medicine. Kyle Diamantas, a very talented person, will be put in the Acting position. President DONALD J. TRUMP
Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley (R) also spoke to the obstructionist role that Makary played in stalling the FDA review of the abortion pill Mifepristone to remove it from unsupervised and widespread use. As RedState reported, Makary was also the one who installed Hilary Perkins as the chief counsel at the FDA. Perkins had a record of defending abortion pill access without a doctor’s supervision and was supportive of the vaccine mandates. Pro-life advocates, along with Sen. Hawley, worked to expose this. Perkins ended up resigning from the position.
This is welcome news. Dr. Makary was uniquely destructive to the prolife movement. He attempted to place pro-abortion lawyers in key positions. He slow walked a vitally necessary review of the abortion drug mifepristone. He used his discretion to approve a new abortion drug when… https://t.co/ZHn5UsImeW
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) May 12, 2026
This is welcome news. Dr. Makary was uniquely destructive to the prolife movement. He attempted to place pro-abortion lawyers in key positions. He slow walked a vitally necessary review of the abortion drug mifepristone. He used his discretion to approve a new abortion drug when the data shows it sends 1 in 10 women to the emergency room. He froze out prolife leaders and repeatedly stonewalled Congress. His resignation is an opportunity for the FDA to reset.
According to reports, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. requested that Makary resign. This week, the deed was done.