The White House is reportedly having a really hard time hiring a communications director

Sean Spicer is only moonlighting as communications director
(Image credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)

When Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller abruptly bowed out of being President Trump's White House communications director on Christmas Eve, Trump gave the job to Sean Spicer, adding the role to his job as press secretary. That was apparently a temporary promotion. White House chief of staff Reince Priebus has been actively trying to hire a communications director for weeks, but "his overtures to several Republican communications professionals have been met with disinterest," Politico's Eliana Johnson reports, citing "a half-dozen sources with knowledge of the situation."

At least two people have turned down the job — "a position normally coveted by Washington political operatives," Johnson notes — according to one source. "There is a list of candidates, but I can see why people aren't interested," a senior administration official tells Politico. "It's a tough job."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.