John Kelly: The White House Is ‘A Miserable Place To Work’

John F. Kelly, White House Chief of Staff for President Donald Trump, was present for he Medal of Honor ceremony for former Specialist Five James C. McCloughan, U.S. Army in the East Room of the White House, on Monday, July 31, 2017. (Photo by Cheriss May) (Photo by Cheriss May/NurPhoto)
John F. Kelly, White House Chief of Staff for President Donald Trump, was present for he Medal of Honor ceremony for former Specialist Five James C. McCloughan, U.S. Army in the East Room of the White House, on Monda... John F. Kelly, White House Chief of Staff for President Donald Trump, was present for he Medal of Honor ceremony for former Specialist Five James C. McCloughan, U.S. Army in the East Room of the White House, on Monday, July 31, 2017. (Photo by Cheriss May) (Photo by Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

The mood in the White House is increasingly grim as President Donald Trump gains confidence in acting alone and on instinct, sending exhausted aides hunting for escape routes, according to a Sunday New York Times report.

Top staff members are among the burned-out group, with Chief of Staff John Kelly reportedly telling visiting senators that the White House is a “miserable place to work.” His deputy Joe Hagin is reportedly looking to vamoose after the North Korea-United States summit.

The already record-high turnover in the Trump White House is widely expected to skyrocket after the 2018 midterms.

While the administration often seems chaotic and flailing from the outside, sources told the New York Times that Trump is enjoying wielding his power unchecked, and isn’t bothered by the exodus that his impulsiveness has sparked.

He reportedly focuses his energy instead on those who are unwaveringly loyal to him, calling his former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and old friend David Bossie for advice.

Per the New York Times, he also enjoys gabbing with EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, especially about the shortcomings of Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

In addition, despite the historic summit with North Korea and his myriad international spats, Trump is reportedly still laser-focused on the leaks in his White House, reportedly trying to ferret out leakers by asking aides to rat on one another.

Per the New York Times, at least one senior staffer has been spreading fake stories to find the source of the leaks.

Latest Livewire

Notable Replies

  1. Top staff members are among the burned-out group, with Chief of Staff John Kelly reportedly telling visiting senators that the White House is a “miserable place to work.”

    
    <img src="/uploads/default/original/3X/8/b/8b1d092e671e80b04a217d37a5de9125133a1f0b.png" width="309" height="163">
  2. Kelly’s coerced loyalty pledge coming up in 5,4,3,2,1…

  3. These reports are soooooo obviously the hallucinations of depraved, treasonous, fake media whores.

  4. Avatar for knut knut says:

    I’m not a stable genius but there’s an easy solution here…

  5. You get out of it what you put into it, buddy.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

47 more replies

Participants

Avatar for system1 Avatar for pluckyinky Avatar for knut Avatar for daveminnj Avatar for bikerdad Avatar for steviedee111 Avatar for becca656 Avatar for labman57 Avatar for tao Avatar for benthere Avatar for snmij197375 Avatar for henk Avatar for dommyluc Avatar for docd Avatar for canary02 Avatar for misha Avatar for uneducated Avatar for stevens7810 Avatar for maximus Avatar for demosthenes59 Avatar for dcd Avatar for sullivanst Avatar for eisenst Avatar for rascal_crone

Continue Discussion
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Deputy Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: