Donald Trump appoints John Kelly to replace Reince Priebus as chief of staff

Donald Trump has named Homeland Security boss John Kelly as chief of staff to replace the under-fire Reince Priebus.

Reince Priebus, left, and General John F. Kelly. Pic: AFP

Donald Trump has ousted his chief of staff Reince Priebus, replacing him with Homeland Security boss John Kelly in a bid to end turmoil and divisions within the White House.

The move follows growing tensions in the West Wing, which erupted into public view yesterday when new White House Communications director Anthony Scaramucci launched a colourful tirade about Mr Priebus to a journalist.

The news came only hours after a humiliating defeat on health care reforms had underlined Mr Trump’s tenuous control over his party in Congress

Following recent turmoil, Mr Priebus resigned on Thursday after just six months in the job, His 189-day tenure was the shortest in modern history for a White House chief of staff.

Mr Trump issued his decision just as he landed aboard Air Force One after a visit to Long Island. Mr Priebus was on the plane with him and left with no comment.

“I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House chief of staff,” Mr Trump tweeted.

“He is a great American and a Great Leader. John has done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my administration.”

Mr Trump also gave thanks to Mr Priebus’ six months of service.

“I would like to thank Reince Priebus for his service and dedication to his country. We accomplished a lot together and I am proud of him.”

I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. He is a Great American....

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 28, 2017

...and a Great Leader. John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my Administration

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 28, 2017

Mr Priebus’s departure came after he lost the confidence of the President and was accused by Mr Scaramucci of being a leaker at a time when the White House is seeking to plug leaks from its administration.

The President had also privately questioned Mr Priebus’s competence after major legislative items failed to pass the US Congress, a Trump confidant said.

Mr Trump walks to speak with reporters after firing Mr Priebus

“Reince is a good man,” Mr Trump told reporters after he got off Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews on the outskirts of Washington.

He said Mr Kelly would do a “fantastic job”.

“General Kelly has been a star, done an incredible job thus far, respected by everybody,” Mr. Trump told reporters.

Mr Trump had stayed on the plane while Mr Priebus and other top aides disembarked. Mr Priebus’s car left the motorcade before Mr Trump got off the plane.

Later, Mr Priebus told CNN: “I think the President wanted to go a different direction.”

He added that he agreed the White House might well benefit from “a reset,” and he said: “I’m always going to be a Trump fan. I’m on Team Trump.”

Republic congressman Peter King, who was on Air Force One, said he spoke to Mr Priebus during the flight from Long Island and was unaware he had been replaced. “Good poker face. Showed nothing,” Mr King said. “We didn’t even know it.”

Mr King said as he was preparing to get disembark, the President told him and other lawmakers on the flight he would announce Mr Kelly as chief of staff.

White House Press Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters that Trump and Priebus began discussing the chief of staff’s departure about two weeks ago. Asked when the President offered Mr Kelly the job, she said, “They’ve been talking about it for a while.”

Mr Priebus said in an interview that he privately submitted his letter of resignation on Thursday, US time.

Mr Priebus has been under fire for weeks, seeing one White House ally after another resign or leave, culminating in the recent departure of press secretary Sean Spicer.

His exit appeared inevitable when Mr Trump did not intervene after Mr Scaramucci this week publicly described Mr Priebus as a “paranoid schizophrenic.”

But according to a senior official quoted by The Wall Street Journal, Mr Trump told Mr Priebus two weeks ago he was planning to bring in a new staff chief. Mr Kelly was offered the job earlier this week and immediately accepted, the senior official said.

Mr Trump had discussed bringing in Mr Kelly with a small group of people, the senior official said. Part of the draw, the official said, was that the president believes Mr Kelly can provide effective leadership and has the respect of the West Wing, which is staffed with aides whose ideology falls across the political spectrum.

The announcement of Mr Priebus’s departure came only after three Republican senators defied White House pressure to vote against health care reforms, which experts predicted would have left millions more Americans without coverage.

The party rebellion — led by Senators Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and John McCain — is a deeply ominous sign for Mr Trump, whose political brand is defined by his deal making acumen and a take-no-prisoners approach to politics.

For months, Mr Trump has kept sceptical Republicans in line with an implicit threat that he would turn his diehard supporters against them.

Republican lawmakers had privately worried that even an angry tweet against them could spell disaster at the next election.

But there are growing signs those threats are losing potency, when Republicans not only killed efforts to dismantle Obamacare, but joined Democrats in supporting a new sanctions regime against Russia.

The sanctions bill — which also includes measures targeting North Korea and Iran — is designed to restrict Mr Trump’s ability to lift punitive measures on Moscow.

Mr Trump had faced a choice between swallowing a bill he deeply opposed and refusing to do so — a move that would intensify suspicions about his attitude to Russia and likely bring a humiliating veto override.

However speculation obver whether he would veto the measure appeared today as his office said he would sign into bill the law ramping up sanctions against Russia.

“President Donald J. Trump read early drafts of the bill and negotiated regarding critical elements of it,” spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement.

“He has now reviewed the final version and, based on its responsiveness to his negotiations, approves the bill and intends to sign it.”

Earlier, the grim news from Congress on Obamacare would have worsened the mood of Mr Trump after outbursts from Mr Scaramucci shone a harsh spotlight on the divisions within his administration.

His new chief of staff was, as Homeland Security secretary, charged with overseeing implementation of Mr Trump’s controversial travel ban, which has faced a series of holdups in the courts. The most recent version seeks to impose a 90-day ban on US entry for people from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen and to suspend temporarily the US program for admitting refugees. Mr. Mr Trump said the order would help prevent terrorism.

Before joining the cabinet, Mr Kelly served as chief of the US Southern Command, the division that oversees U.S. military activities south of Mexico, including Central America, South America and the Caribbean. In that role he focused on homeland-security issues because the post involved monitoring drug trafficking and other smuggling activity south of the US.

Mr. Kelly, 67 years old, also served as legislative assistant to the Marine Corps commandant, gaining experience in dealing with Congress.

The appointment likely signals a greater focus on law and order issues and will put further strain on relations between Mr Trump and the Republican establishment.

Both Mr Priebus and Mr Spicer were part of the Republican National Committee, and the bridge that linked the party to Mr Trump.

With Agencies