Chief of Staff John Kelly Will Leave the White House By the End of the Year
President Trump told reporters Saturday that Chief of Staff John Kelly will exit the White House by the end of the end of the year. "John Kelly will be leaving - I don't know if I can say 'retiring,'" said the president. "But, he's a great guy."
Kelly's impending departure has been long-rumored. When the retired general was tapped to replace the hapless Reince Priebus, he was lauded as a steady hand that might serve as an effective counter to Trump's worst impulses. But over the course of his 16 months in the White House, the promised "adult in the room" proved to be less moderate than expected. He defended Robert E. Lee as an "honorable man," authorized U.S. troops' use of force against Central American migrants, and declared that some DREAMers were "too lazy to get off their asses."
Early in his tenure, Kelly successfully pushed out some of Trump's more controversial hires, including Steve Bannon, Omarosa Manigault Newman, and Sebastian Gorka. But the president pushed back against Kelly's attempts to impose order on his chaotic White House, and Kelly's influence declined. In the spring, NBC reported that he had called Trump "an idiot."
The president said that he would announce Kelly's replacement in the coming days.
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