President Donald Trump announced that Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) will be his new White House chief of staff Friday night. His predecessor, Mick Mulvaney, will become special envoy to northern Ireland.
….I want to thank Acting Chief Mick Mulvaney for having served the Administration so well. He will become the United States Special Envoy for Northern Ireland. Thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 7, 2020
The decision isn’t wholly out of the blue — Meadows decided not to run for reelection back in December, hinting that he’d serve the President in a “different capacity.”
Meadows, a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus, has long been a staunch and vocal Trump ally.
Meanwhile, Trump had become increasingly discontented with Mulvaney amid his impeachment woes. Mulvaney’s self-immolation started burning in earnest after a disastrous press conference where he tacitly agreed with the premise that Trump’s interactions with Ukraine amounted to a quid pro quo.
“Get over it,” he told reporters. “There’s going to be political influence in foreign policy.” He later tried to walk the comments back.
