In his first week as President Trump's chief of staff, retired Gen. John Kelly has moved to rein in the chaos in Trump's White House "with a suddenness and force that have upended the West Wing," The New York Times reports. "Kelly cuts off rambling advisers midsentence. He listens in on conversations between Cabinet secretaries and the president. He has booted lingering staff members out of high-level meetings, and ordered the doors of the Oval Office closed to discourage strays."
Kelly isn't trying to control Trump himself, however, reportedly telling White House staff that he is there to manage them, not the president, his Twitter habits, or his TV viewing. "He has privately acknowledged that he cannot control the president and that his authority would be undermined if he tried and failed," the Times reports. Key to Kelly's strategy is vetting the information Trump is given to ensure it's accurate, and who delivers it, and he knows that won't be easy. Politico explains:
In the West Wing, many of the president's most controversial decisions have been attributed to bad information, partially because the president is easily swayed by the last person he has talked to — or the last thing he has read. For example, he accused President Barack Obama of tapping his phone line in Trump Tower after seeing comments from a conservative talk show host and a Breitbart News article. He has often posted some of his most controversial tweets while watching Fox News and stewing. [Politico]
Those who know Kelly, including former Pentagon bosses Robert Gates and Leon Panetta, describe him as blunt and honest. "John is the kind of guy who will look you in the eye and tell you what the hell he is thinking," Panetta tells the Times. "The real question is whether the president will give him the authority he needs to do the job." Gates said it's "a really important first step" that even Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have agreed to go through Kelly, adding, "The question is, does it last?"
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Panetta, who's spoken with Kelly since he accepted the job, explains in a Washington Post op-ed Thursday night that he faced similar challenges when he became Bill Clinton's chief of staff in 1994, and lays out five "elements critical to improving White House operations." But Kelly can only enact them, Kelly adds, if "Trump is willing to make these changes."
-
Political cartoons for November 30Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include the Saudi-China relationship, MAGA spelled wrong, and more
-
Rothermere’s Telegraph takeover: ‘a right-leaning media powerhouse’Talking Point Deal gives Daily Mail and General Trust more than 50% of circulation in the UK newspaper market
-
The US-Saudi relationship: too big to fail?Talking Point With the Saudis investing $1 trillion into the US, and Trump granting them ‘major non-Nato ally’ status, for now the two countries need each other
-
Judge halts Trump’s DC Guard deploymentSpeed Read The Trump administration has ‘infringed upon the District’s right to govern itself,’ the judge ruled
-
Trump accuses Democrats of sedition meriting ‘death’Speed Read The president called for Democratic lawmakers to be arrested for urging the military to refuse illegal orders
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
-
Judge blasts ‘profound’ errors in Comey caseSpeed Read ‘Government misconduct’ may necessitate dismissing the charges against the former FBI director altogether
-
Ecuador rejects push to allow US military basesSpeed Read Voters rejected a repeal of a constitutional ban on US and other foreign military bases in the country
