White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday defended the Trump administration's decision to force out FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe just a month before he was set to retire.

At Monday's press briefing, Sanders was asked why McCabe, who Trump has repeatedly attacked on Twitter, was reportedly removed from his position even though he was expected to retire within a few weeks.

For her part, Sanders suggested that the White House was out of the loop when it came to McCabe's departure.

"We've seen the reports as all of you have," Sanders said, referring all questions to the FBI.

"Clearly the president seemed to be involved in a public relations campaign against Andrew McCabe," Fox News correspondent John Roberts pointed out.

"The president stands by his previous comments," Sanders admitted. "In terms of the situation today, we've seen the reports as all of you have. We don't have a specific comment."

"Does this mean the president was not informed?" another correspondent asked.

"No, he hasn't," Sanders said.