US President is a man full of drama and controversy defines him.
His campaign had its fair share of staff shake-ups before the election and that continued into his administration.
Now more than two years into the Trump administration, over a dozen notable members of both the White House and the administration at large have left their posts.
Here are the departures of White House staffers and other administration officials, starting with the most recent:
Kirstjen Nielsen
The announcement she is leaving her post comes days after the president visited the southern border.
Mr Trump has recently threatened to shut the crossing, but has since backtracked and promised to give Mexico a year to stop drugs and migrants crossing into the US.
Ms Nielsen first joined Mr Trump’s administration in January 2017 as an assistant to the former Homeland Security chief John Kelly.
She became Mr Kelly’s deputy when he moved to become White House chief of staff, but returned to lead her former department later that year.
Ms Nielsen defended border policies such as holding children in wire enclosures in the face of strong condemnation and intense questioning by Democrats in Congress.
David Shulkin
Role: Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Officially started: Feb. 14, 2017
Left: March 28, 2018
408 days in his tenure
A lone holdover from the Obama administration, Shulkin has butted heads with Trump over issues of veterans’ care, but it was an internal investigation alleging ethics violations and a misuse of taxpayer dollars that helped seal Shulkin’s fate.
Trump announced Shulkin’s departure via tweet, after declaring that Adm. Ronny L. Jackson, who has been serving as the president’s physician, will be replacing him to head the agency.
The day after reports of his departure, Shulkin penned an op-ed in The New York Times criticizing the “toxic, chaotic, disrespectful and subversive” environment in Washington that he says prevented him from accomplishing work veterans need and deserve.
He wrote that his character had been attacked by politically motivated people “who wanted me out of the way.”
H.R. McMaster
Role: National Security Adviser
Officially started: Feb. 20, 2017
Left: His resignation was announced on March 22, 2018, and will become effective on April 9, 2018
413 days in his tenure
The White House confirmed that Gen. H.R. McMaster’s departure from the administration was mutually agreed upon.
McMaster’s departure in early 2018 had been planned and expected, especially as Trump re-tools his team ahead of historic talks with North Korea, sources with direct knowledge told ABC News.
He was seen as adding a steady and intellectual voice to Trump’s security team, but the president chafed at his style and disposition in Oval Office briefings, the sources said. He also clashed with former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and other top military brass, including Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
Rex Tillerson
Role: secretary of state
Officially started: Feb. 1, 2017
Left: March 13, 2018 (though remaining during the transition, the White House said)
406 days in his tenure
Rex Tillerson became the second agency secretary to leave Trump’s Cabinet after the president announced he was being replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo.
Tillerson and Trump have had tumultuous points in their relationship in the past. One public dispute came in October amid reports that Tillerson called the president a “moron.”
John McEntee
Role: personal aide
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: March 12, 2018
417 days in his tenure
John McEntee was escorted out of the White House March 12, 2018, sources told ABC News. There were issues with his background clearance, according to the sources.
The review of White House staffers security clearance was ordered by the White House Chief of Staff John Kelly after staff secretary Rob Porter’s departure. That list, a source told ABC News, followed standard procedures that included such options as considering whether the individual should be relieved of duty or reassigned to another administration post.
Gary Cohn
Role: Director of the National Economic Council and the chief economic adviser to the president
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: His resignation was announced on March 6, 2018, and his last day was on March 8, 2018
411 days in his tenure
Cohn announced his resignation amid reported ongoing debate inside the White House about the taxes Trump proposed on aluminum and steel imports. Cohn was believed to be against the tariffs.
Trump issued a statement confirming the departure, calling Cohn “a rare talent” who “did a superb job in driving our agenda, helping to deliver historic tax cuts and reforms and unleashing the American economy once again.”
Cohn did not explicitly say why he was leaving, saying in a statement that it was “an honor to serve my country” and thanking Trump “for giving me this opportunity.”
Hope Hicks
Role: Her most senior title was communications director
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Her resignation was announced on Feb. 28, 2018, and her last day was March 29, 2018
405 days in her tenure
Hicks was Trump’s longest-serving aide when she announced that she will resign her post in the coming weeks.
After the news broke, Trump said he “will miss having her by my side.”
Rob Porter
Role: White House staff secretary
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Feb. 7, 2018
384 days in his tenure
Omarosa Manigault-Newman
Role: Director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: She resigned on Dec. 13, 2017, but remained a White House employee until Jan. 20, 2018.
366 days in her tenure
Dina Powell
Role: Deputy national security adviser
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Her departure was announced on Dec. 8, 2017, but she continued to serve in the White House until Jan. 12, 2018, according to Bloomberg.
358 days in her tenure
Tom Price
Role: Secretary of Health and Human Services
Officially started: Feb. 10, 2017
Left: Sept. 29, 2017
232 days in his tenure
Sebastian Gorka
Role: Deputy assistant to the president
Hired: Jan. 30, 2017
Left: Aug. 25, 2017
208 days in his tenure
Steve Bannon
Role: Chief strategist and senior counselor
Hired: Nov. 13, 2016
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Aug. 18, 2017
211 days in his tenure
Anthony Scaramucci
Role: White House communications director
Hired: July 21, 2017
Officially started: July 26, 2017
Left: July 31, 2017
6 days in his tenure
Reince Priebus
Role: White House chief of staff
Hired: Nov. 13, 2016
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: July 28, 2017
190 days in his tenure
Sean Spicer
Role: White House press secretary
Hired: Dec. 22, 2016
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: July 21, 2017
183 days in his tenure
Mike Dubke
Role: White House communications director
Hired: March 6, 2017
Left: May 18, 2017
74 days in his tenure
James Comey
Role: FBI director
Hired: June 21, 2013
Officially started: Sept. 4, 2013
Left: May 9, 2017
1,344 days in his tenure
Mike Flynn
Role in the Trump administration: National security adviser
Hired: Nov. 18, 2016
Officially started: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Feb. 13, 2017
25 days in his tenure
Sally Yates
Role: Acting attorney general
Promoted: Jan. 20, 2017
Left: Jan. 30, 2017
11 days in her tenure
Other notable departures:
- Steven Goldstein: Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs
- Josh Raffel: Deputy communications director
- Rick Dearborn: deputy chief of staff
- George Sifakis: director, Office of Public Liaison
- Ezra Cohen-Watnick: senior director for intelligence programs, National Security Council
- Michael Short: senior press assistant
- Walter Shaub: director, Office of Government Ethics
- Vivek Murthy: surgeon general
- Angella Reid: chief usher, White House
- Katie Walsh: deputy chief of staff
- Preet Bharara: U.S. attorney, Southern District of New York
What do you think of these departures?
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