Why John Kelly is ‘ready to quit’ as Donald Trump’s chief of staff

John Kelly appears before the Senate for
his confirmation hearing in
January

The White House has denied reports that President Donald
Trump is searching for a replacement for John Kelly following
repeated resignation threats by the fed-up chief of
staff. 

Tensions have been high between the pair for some time. The
president is irritated by the strict system that Kelly has imposed
on him, which Trump beleves conflicts with his freewheeling
leadership style, CNN reports. Kelly in turn has been
horrified by Trump’s unpredictable outbursts and has threatened to
quit on a number of occasions.

Kelly has reportedly described the White House a “miserable
place to work” and is said to have called Trump an “idiot”,
according to Business Insider.

Time magazine reports Kelly as saying
that “he’d be happy if he made it to the one-year mark in the
position” – an anniversary that he is due to reach in late
July.

Rumours are already circulating about who might replace him as
chief of staff, despite the White House denying the reports.

“It is absolutely not true and that it is fake news. I’ve also
spoken to General Kelly, who said this was news to him,” White
House spokesperson Lindsay Walters said yesterday.

But similar denials have meant nothing in the past. The White
House dismissed reports of the departure of then-national security
adviser H.R. McMaster shortly before he left.

According to sources close to Trump, possible candidates
to take over from Kelly include the president’s budget director,
Mick Mulvaney, and Vice President Mike Pence’s chief of staff, Nick
Ayers, says Time.