Trump reportedly wants the White House to be even more chaotic
President Trump's ideal work environment is a bit unusual. The president reportedly views his administration as too stable and structured, preferring rapid staff turnover as the best way to keep moving forward, Bloomberg reported Thursday.
Trump contests the notion that his White House is in "chaos," anonymous staffers told Bloomberg. Rather, he thinks it's verging on stagnant, as he settles into his role as president and takes the lead on procedures previously left to Chief of Staff John Kelly.
Further, Trump apparently views his ouster of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, and Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin — all within a span of just 15 days — as a set of strategic moves to speed his agenda along. Bloomberg reports that Trump has recently complained about inaction in Congress, wishing for fewer of the "guardrails and rules" that get in the way of his priorities.
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Staffers and aides say that Trump's desire for more independent decision-making means that Kelly's leverage over the president is waning, and Trump is making major decisions, like the replacement of McMaster with John Bolton, on his own. Against Kelly's advice, Trump is in contact with former members of the administration who caused plenty of chaos of their own: former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and former communications director Anthony Scaramucci. Read more at Bloomberg.
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Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.
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