President Donald Trump announced the appointment of John Kelly as the White House chief of staff on Friday, ousting Reince Priebus.
“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 Americanand a Great Leader. John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my Administration.,” Trump wrote on Twitter.
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
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!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 28, 2017
The announcement comes on the heels of warnings of a major shake up in White House staff from the White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci. In an interview with New Yorker, Scaramucci believed that Priebus was the source of some of the many White House leaks.
The ouster of Priebus follows that of press aide Michael Short, who resigned shortly after Scaramucci spoke about firing him over leaks earlier this week. Sean Spicer resigned from his post as the White House press secretary when Scaramucci was appointed to lead the communications team.
When Trump won the election in 2016, Spicer and Priebus opposed the appointment of Scaramucci to the administration. Scaramucci had sold his company anticipating that he will join Trump’s administration.
Priebus was the chair of the Republican National Committee before joining the Trump administration.
“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!” President Trump wrote in another message Friday.
President Trump appointed John Kelly to lead the Department of Homeland Security on January 20, 2017. Kelly is a retired United States Marine Corps general who served in the armed forces for more than 45 years.