Top Trump Aide Rick Wiley Leaves Campaign Shortly After He Was Hired

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a New York primary night campaign event, Tuesday, April 19, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
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Rick Wiley, the former campaign manager for Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R), left Donald Trump’s campaign on Wednesday just a little over a month after he was officially hired.

In a statement addressing Wiley’s departure, the Trump campaign said that his role on the campaign was always meant to be temporary.

“Rick Wiley was hired on a short-term basis as a consultant until the campaign was running full steam. It is now doing better than ever, we are leading in the polls, and we have many exciting events ready to go, far ahead of schedule, while Hillary continues her long, boring quest against Bernie. We would like to thank Rick for helping us during this transition period,” the campaign said in a Wednesday night statement.

Though the campaign downplayed Wiley’s exit from the campaign, Politico reported that Wiley clashed with Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and those hired by him. And according to NBC News, Wiley did not communicate with staff hired before he was brought onto the campaign.

Wiley was one of the first aides hired by Paul Manafort, and the campaign issued an announcement in April naming Wiley the national political director.

“Rick is a seasoned political expert with a very successful career in winning elections. He brings decades of experience, and his deep ties to political leaders and activists across the country will be a tremendous asset as we enter the final phase of securing the nomination,” the campaign said in the April statement.

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Notable Replies

  1. Avatar for pshah pshah says:

    How much longer before Manafort leaves the fort? Seems to be just a matter of time.

  2. Avatar for 1gg 1gg says:

    I guess he figured out that you can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

  3. Avatar for lio lio says:

    It’s a little off topic, but polling with favorable results for HRC usually doesn’t make it to TPM. There is a Bloomberg poll out today showing her leading Trump 46%-39% in the Rust Belt. I wish I could provide a link, but my laptop is a little too cumbersome for my morning jogs.

  4. Every statement from the Trump camp, even the most routine ones trying to say as little as possible like this one has to include third grader level boasts and taunts. It’s been a long slope downward for the Republicans to this level of juvenileness, and then going off a cliff at the end. Well, I hope it is the end.

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