Trump john kelly

President Donald Trump is spending the Friday after Thanksgiving down in Mar-a-Lago interviewing candidates for his cabinet — and embattled Chief of Staff John Kelly is nowhere to be found. Trump told reporters on Thursday that he would be interviewing people this week for jobs in his administration. That comes amid a cascade of reports that Trump has been considering replacements for Kelly — who has long had a contentious relationship with the president — and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. When asked about the interviews on Thursday, Trump told reporters: “Yeah, we’ll have a few. Very happy with my Cabinet and people that work for me. I’ll probably be changing a couple, maybe a few.” ABC’s White House correspondent Tara Palmeri reported on Friday that Trump said he was conducting interviews — and that Kelly was absent from the Florida resort. Among those reportedly being considered to replace Kelly: Nick Ayers, … [Read more...] about Where is John Kelly? Chief of Staff Absent as Trump Conducts Interviews for Cabinet Positions at Mar-a-Lago

Sen. Chuck Grassley offered a rare rebuke of President Donald Trump on Monday, writing on Twitter that he wished the president would stop publicly criticizing John Kelly, his chief of staff. “I wish President Trump would never discuss publicly any ill feelings has abt his CofStaff Gen Kelly,” the Iowa Republican tweeted. “After all he was a Marine for 47 yrs. defended our freedoms. We need show respect.” In an interview with Fox News anchor Chris Wallace that aired Sunday, Trump suggested Kelly, his long-embattled chief of staff, was on the outs. “We get along well,” Trump said of Kelly. “There are certain things I love what he does. And there are certain things that I don’t like that he does — that aren’t his strength.” “He’s doing an excellent job in many ways,” Trump continued. “There are a couple of things where it’s just not his strength. It’s not his fault, it’s not his … [Read more...] about Chuck Grassley Scolds Trump For Publicly Bashing John Kelly: He ‘Defended Our Freedoms’

Amid a flurry of speculation over the potential exit of President Donald Trump‘s Chief of Staff John Kelly, White House Director of Strategic Communications Mercedes Schlapp attempted to put the rumors to rest. During a conversation with The Washington Post‘s Robert Costa for the publication’s Thursday talk titled “A New Era of Women in Politics,” Schlapp was asked whether Kelly was “leaving soon,” and appeared to answer directly. “No,” she said. “I mean, the president has a great relationship with Gen. Kelly. The one thing Gen. Kelly has brought to the staff is a lot of the putting in processes in place when it comes to policy processes and ensuring that we’re able to get something done from point A to point Z. That’s why we had so much success with the tax reform.” Despite her praise for the chief of staff, Costa pushed Schlapp to discuss whether a woman might be interviewed for … [Read more...] about White House Spox Mercedes Schlapp Gives John Kelly Vote of Confidence: He’s With Us ‘At This Point’

Multiple reports indicate that White House chief of staff John Kelly might soon depart from the Trump Administration. Reports emerged on Monday night that President Donald Trump plans to replace Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen with someone who will execute his policies in better alignment with his agenda. Nielsen is a known political ally of Kelly, and on Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported the president is thinking about who he’ll get to replace Kelly if Nielsen’s forced resignation causes him to leave the administration. “This is how the president works,” an unnamed White House official told the Journal. “He’s doused a bunch of people in gasoline and he’s waiting for someone to light a match.” In a separate report, NBC says Kelly has recently clashed with various members of the White House — including, most notably, the First Lady. Hallie Jackson told Andrea Mitchell that Kelly butted heads with National … [Read more...] about John Kelly May Be Out at White House After Clashing With Melania Trump