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A6 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 11 december 2018

Trump scrambling to find new White House chief of staff

By ZEKE MILLER, JILL COLVIN more contenders. the blame and none of the cused” on his current posi- months, and the president
and JONATHAN LEMIRE But as quickly as names credit for everything that tion. A person familiar with had already been steering
Associated Press were being floated, candi- happens. And that’s in the Treasury Secretary Steven inquiries to the Pence staff-
WASHINGTON (AP) — dates appeared to be pull- best of times. We are not in Mnuchin’s thinking but not er rather than Kelly. These
Wanted: Top aide to most ing themselves from con- the best of times.” authorized to speak pub- people, like others, spoke
powerful leader in world. on the condition of ano-
Chief qualification: Willing nymity to discuss sensitive
to take the job. Must also personnel matters.
be prepared to tolerate But Trump jumped the
regular undermining by gun Saturday, and Ayers
boss and risk of steep le- re-evaluated his decision.
gal bills. Post-employment While a White House official
prospects: Uncertain. said Ayers’ decision was
President Donald Trump is driven by a desire to return
scrambling to find a new to Georgia to be closer to
chief of staff after his first his family, people familiar
choice to replace John with his thinking said he
Kelly bailed at the last min- was also worried about
ute and several other po- scrutiny of his former politi-
tential successors signaled cal consulting business. He
they weren’t interested in and Trump also could not
the job. reach agreement on Ay-
Back to square one, Trump ers’ length of service. Ayers
is mulling over a list of at wanted to serve on an in-
least four potential can- terim basis; Trump wanted
didates after Nick Ay- a two-year commitment.
ers, Vice President Mike Trump was stung by Ayers’
Pence’s chief of staff, took decision to back out, ac-
himself out of the running cording to people close to
Sunday and decided that In a Monday, Dec. 3, 2018 file photo, Nick Ayers, right, listens as Supreme Court Associate Justice him. The embarrassment
Neil Gorsuch waits for the arrival of the casket for former President George H.W. Bush to lie in State
he would instead be leav- at the Capitol on Capitol Hill in Washington. comes at a pivotal time
ing the White House. The Associated Press for Trump, as he prepares
announcement surprised for re-election while facing
even senior staffers who sideration, underscoring Trump’s administration has licly made clear he, too, is an expected onslaught of
believed that Ayers’ as- the challenges of working set records for staff turn- happy in his current post. investigations from Demo-
cension was a done deal. for a mercurial president over, and the president has While some of the reactions crats who will take control
Trump is now soliciting in- who has acknowledged often struggled to attract may be strategic posturing, of the House and amid the
put on a list of candidates that he likes to surround experienced political pro- there is also ample reason ongoing Russia probe.
that is said to include Of- himself with chaos and de- fessionals, a challenge that for any aspiring chief of When Trump appoints a
fice of Management and spises any suggestion he’s has grown more difficult staff to give pause to the replacement for Kelly, he
Budget Director Mick Mul- being managed. with the upcoming threat notion of taking the job. will set a record for most
vaney, Rep. Mark Mead- “In the best of times, it is of costly Democratic over- Trump has already burned chiefs of staff within the first
ows, R-N.C., the chairman relentless,” said Chris Whip- sight investigations and an through two chiefs of staff 24 months of an adminis-
of the conservative House ple, an expert on chiefs of uncertain political environ- — a former chairman of tration, according to an
Freedom Caucus, and staff and author of “The ment. Those who take high- the Republican National analysis by Kathryn Dunn
former New Jersey Gov. Gatekeepers,” a book on level positions in the White Committee and a retired Tenpas of the Brookings In-
Chris Christie. And allies are the subject. “It’s 24/7. It’s House at this time open Marine four-star general — stitution.
pitching Trump on even thankless. You get all of themselves up to potential subjecting them to regular Yet Trump once mocked
legal exposure and pricey humiliation and ridicule. his predecessor for chief of
Study: Social media lawyer bills, said David B. Former RNC Chairman staff turnover.
“3 Chief of Staffs in less than
Cohen, a political science Reince Priebus’s depar-
surpasses newspapers professor at The University ture from the White House 3 years of being President:
of Akron who co-wrote a was unceremoniously an-
Part of the reason why @
as news source book on chiefs of staff. nounced by tweet. Nearly BarackObama can’t man-
Meadows said Monday he 18 months later, Trump age to pass his agenda,”
had not discussed the role stepped on an orderly suc- Trump wrote in a 2012
with the president, but one cession plan for Kelly, mak- tweet.
NEW YORK (AP) — A survey says Americans today are congressional Republican ing a surprise Saturday an- Trump had said Saturday
more likely to get news from social media web sites than
newspapers. said Meadows has told oth- nouncement on the White that he would be announc-
House lawn that the retired ing Kelly’s replacement in
ers he wants the job.
The Pew Research Center said Monday that 20 percent of
Americans cited social media as a frequent news source, “It’s not been anything that general would be leaving the next day or two. But
with Ayers no longer wait-
by year’s end.
I’ve been out advocat-
compared to 16 percent that credited newspapers. It’s
the first time since Pew has found sites like Facebook and ing for,” Meadows told Fox Ayers’ ascension and Kel- ing in the wings, there is
News, but he added that ly’s departure looked like fear that Trump may not
Twitter outpacing newspapers.
Pew has been asking about news consumption, with a “my life changed” after a done deal Friday night, have someone in place in
multiple time for Kelly’s departure or
to
Ayers decided to pull out according
slight change in wording, since 1991. That year, 56 per-
cent of Americans said newspapers when asked where of the job. people in and close to the that he will pick the first per-
son who comes to mind as
administration, with an an-
Meanwhile, U.S. Trade Rep-
they had gotten their news yesterday.
The survey also found that 81 percent of people aged 65 resentative Robert Lighthiz- nouncement planned for he tries to counter percep-
er, a potential contender, Monday. Trump and Ayers tions that no one wants the
and over often get news from television, compared to said he was “entirely fo-
only 16 percent of people aged 18 to 29.q had discussed the job for position.q