President Trump has confimred that his chief of staff, John
Kelly, would step down by the end of the year.
The departure of Kelly, who was brought in last year to
impose order on the West Wing but found managing Trump an impossible task, had
been rumored for months, and Trump announced it to reporters before departing
for the Army-Navy football game in Philadelphia.
He said a replacement would be named in the next day or
two. “John Kelly will be leaving I don’t
know if I can say ‘retiring, but he’s a great guy. John Kelly will be leaving
at the end of the year” the president said.
The announcement of Kelly’s departure comes as the White
House braces for the final stages of the investigation by the special counsel,
Robert S. Mueller III, including a report detailing his findings on questions
of collusion and obstruction of justice. The president also faces a string of
oversight investigations into his administration from Democrats after they take
control of the House next month.
