Trump asks Kelly to remain chief of staff until 2020
WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump has asked White House chief of staff John Kelly to remain in the post through the 2020 presidential election and Kelly has agreed to do so, said a person familiar with the discussion.
The commitment would provide stability at the top for a White House staff that has seen high turnover, unless either Trump or Kelly changes his mind.
Kelly came under fire earlier in the year for the White House's handling of security clearances after domestic violence allegations surfaced against former staff secretary Rob Porter. Porter was fired, and amid the fallout, other aides said Kelly lost some of his clout with the president. Since then, Kelly has been the subject of persistent rumors that he is about to be ousted.
A retired four-star Marine Corps general who served as Trump's first Homeland Security secretary, Kelly entered the White House last July with a level of authority aides say his predecessor, Reince Priebus, never possessed. He moved quickly to impose order _ most notably by restricting access to the Oval Office for subordinates as well as the president's many friends, unofficial advisers and confidants.
_Bloomberg News
