President Obama will appear in the Rose Garden to announce that Jones is resigning and will be replaced by Thomas Donilon, who currently serves as deputy national security adviser.

Jones's resignation comes after the NSA had criticized Donilon, his successor. Those comments were reported in Bob Woodward's recent book, "Obama's Wars."

The chief adviser to the president on national security affairs, Jones has been the only NSA in President Obama's 21 months in office. Donilon was discussed as a possible replacement for Rahm Emanuel as White House chief of staff; that job instead went to Pete Rouse, Obama's former Senate chief of staff.

Jones' resignation comes at a time of transition in top White House staff: Emanuel officially announced his departure last week to run for mayor of Chicago, National Economic Council Director Larry Summers announced two weeks ago that he will leave the White House and return to Harvard by the end of the year, and the White House is currently seeking Senate confirmation for Jacob Lew to replace Peter Orszag as director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Steeped in Democratic politics, Donilon has worked for Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and Joe Biden. He served as chief of staff to Secretary of State Warren Christopher, lobbied for Fannie Mae from 1999 to 2005, and played a key role in developing Obama's strategy for the war in Afghanistan.