About six miles away from Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s lieutenants and wannabe lieutenants have spent weeks working to avoid the fundamental error that derailed the first MAGA presidency: a trifurcated White House staff complete with warring factions and middling allegiance to Trump and his agenda.
“I think that one of the things that plagued the White House in 2017 was kind of three competing power centers,” said Marc Short, the former chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence. “It seems that this time, there’s more unity and purpose and mission with the team that’s been assembled.”
Nearly a dozen Republicans, party officials and former and current Trump officials familiar with the transition process told NOTUS that the goal is not just loyalty, but something that every president hopes to enjoy. It’s weeding out those who would protest Trump’s agenda, no matter how controversial it may become.