White House officials claim that chief of staff John Kelly presents himself as a savior and calls Trump an "idiot" behind his back.

What an idiot.

Courtesy of NBC News:  

White House chief of staff John Kelly has eroded morale in the West Wing in recent months with comments to aides that include insulting the president's intelligence and casting himself as the savior of the country, according to eight current and former White House officials. 

The officials said Kelly portrays himself to Trump administration aides as the lone bulwark against catastrophe, curbing the erratic urges of a president who has a questionable grasp on policy issues and the functions of government. He has referred to Trump as "an idiot" multiple times to underscore his point, according to four officials who say they've witnessed the comments.

Officials said Kelly's public image as a retired four-star general instilling discipline on a chaotic White House and an impulsive president belies what they describe as the undisciplined and indiscreet approach he's employed as chief of staff. The private manner aides describe may shed new light on why Kelly now finds himself — just nine months into the job — grappling with diminished influence and a drumbeat of questions about how long he'll remain at the White House. 

"He says stuff you can't believe," said one senior White House official. "He'll say it and you think, 'That is not what you should be saying.'"

Of course since this story broke earlier today Kelly has issued a statement pushing back on the allegations:  
“I am committed to our President, his agenda, and our country. This is another pathetic attempt to smear people close to President Trump and distract from the administration’s many successes.”

Yeah, okay.

This is not the first time that we have heard that there is tension between Trump and his chief of staff, and apparently Kelly has been greatly marginalized as of late.

And also according to NBC News Kelly's negative remarks about the president are not the only thing that puts his job in jeopardy:

Current and former White House officials said Kelly has at times made remarks that have rattled female staffers. Kelly has told aides multiple times that women are more emotional than men, including at least once in front of the president, four current and former officials said. 

And during a firestorm in February over accusations of domestic abuse against then-White House staff secretary Rob Porter, Kelly wondered aloud how much more Porter would have to endure before his honor could be restored, according to three officials who were present for the comments. He also questioned why Porter's ex-wives wouldn't just move on based on the information he said he had about his marriages, the officials said. 

Some current and former White House officials said they expect Kelly to leave by July, his one-year mark. But others say it's anyone's guess. What's clear is both Trump and Kelly seem to have tired of each other. 

Move over Rex Tillerson it looks like you are about to have a little company in the "We Just Got Shitcanned Hotel."

There has been an uptick in Donald Trump's use of his personal cell phone because he does not want his Chief of Staff to know who he is calling. Oh that's not good.

Courtesy of CNN: 

President Donald Trump is increasingly relying on his personal cell phone to contact outside advisers, multiple sources inside and outside the White House told CNN, as Trump returns to the free-wheeling mode of operation that characterized the earliest days of his administration. 

"He uses it a lot more often more recently," a senior White House official said of the President's cell phone. 

Sources cited Trump's stepped-up cell phone use as an example of chief of staff John Kelly's waning influence over who gets access to the President. During the early days of Kelly's tenure, multiple sources said, Trump made many of his calls from the White House switchboard -- a tactic that allowed the chief of staff to receive a printed list of who Trump had phoned. Kelly has less insight into who Trump calls on his personal cell phone. 

While Trump never entirely gave up his personal cell phone once Kelly came aboard, one source close to the White House speculated that the President is ramping up the use of his personal device recently in part because "he doesn't want Kelly to know who he's talking to." 

The senior White House official said Trump "is talking to all sorts of people on it," noting Trump's barrage of private calls is a "recent development."

Though it gags me to say it out loud, this man is the president of the United States, and yet he conducts himself like a teenage girl sneaking phone calls to the boy from the wrong side of the tracks that her parents don't want her to see anymore.

Which really makes you wonder exactly WHO is Trump calling that he wants to keep off the official record and secret from his own chief of staff?

And does he look like this guy?

 Because I really that bet he does.

New reporting suggests that Trump is preparing to kick both National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, and Chief of Staff John Kelly to the curb.

Courtesy of WaPo: 

President Trump has decided to remove H.R. McMaster as his national security adviser and is actively discussing potential replacements, according to five people with knowledge of the plans, preparing to deliver yet another jolt to the senior ranks of his administration. 

Trump is now comfortable with ousting McMaster, with whom he never personally gelled, but is willing to take time executing the move because he wants to ensure both that the three-star Army general is not humiliated and that there is a strong successor lined up, these people said. 

The turbulence is part of a broader potential shake-up under consideration by Trump that is likely to include senior officials at the White House, where staffers are gripped by fear and un­certainty as they await the next move from an impulsive president who enjoys stoking conflict. 

For all of the evident disorder, Trump feels emboldened, advisers said — buoyed by what he views as triumphant decisions last week to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum and to agree to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The president is enjoying the process of assessing his team and making changes, tightening his inner circle to those he considers survivors and who respect his unconventional style, one senior White House official said.

When this news hit the airwaves Sarah Huckabee Sanders responded with a tweet. 

Just spoke to @POTUS and Gen. H.R. McMaster - contrary to reports they have a good working relationship and there are no changes at the NSC.

— Sarah Sanders (@PressSec) March 16, 2018

Essentially this is how you know a story is accurate, when Sanders denies it is accurate.

You may recall that in the past the White House has also denied that Reince Priebus, Steven Bannon, and Rex Tillerson were about to be fired.

But don't think the drama stops there.

Courtesy of CBS News: 

The man brought in last summer to impose order in the White House, chief of staff John Kelly, may also be on the way out, according to congressional and administration sources. 

Sarah Huckabee Sanders has not yet had the chance to deny/confirm this news yet, but it is pretty clear that Trump wants to do away with anybody with an ounce of competence in his administration, so I think this news is likely pretty accurate.

I wonder which Fox News talking head he will tap to replace him?  

Donald Trump is looking to clean house and replace his senior staff with people who will not try to rein him in. Uh oh!

Courtesy of Vanity Fair:  

With the departures of Hope Hicks and Gary Cohn, the Trump presidency is entering a new phase—one in which Trump is feeling liberated to act on his impulses. “Trump is in command. He’s been in the job more than a year now. He knows how the levers of power work. He doesn’t give a fuck,” the Republican said. Trump’s decision to circumvent the policy process and impose tariffs on imported steel and aluminum reflects his emboldened desire to follow his impulses and defy his advisers. “It was like a fuck-you to Kelly,” a Trump friend said. “Trump is red-hot about Kelly trying to control him.” 

According to five Republicans close to the White House, Trump has diagnosed the problem as having the wrong team around him and is looking to replace his senior staff in the coming weeks. “Trump is going for a clean reset, but he needs to do it in a way that’s systemic so it doesn’t look like it’s chaos,” one Republican said. 

Sources said that the first officials to go will be Chief of Staff John Kelly and National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, both of whom Trump has clashed with for months. On Tuesday, Trump met with John Bolton in the Oval Office. When he plans to visit Mar-a-Lago next weekend, Trump is expected to interview more candidates for both positions, according to two sources. “He’s going for a clean slate,” one source said. Cohn had been lobbying to replace Kelly as chief, two sources said, and quit when he didn’t get the job. “Trump laughed at Gary when he brought it up,” one outside adviser to the White House said. 

Next on the departure list are Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump. Trump remains fiercely loyal to his family, but various distractions have eroded their efficacy within the administration. Both have been sidelined without top-secret security clearances by Kelly, and sources expect them to be leaving at some point in the near future.

"He doesn't give a fuck."

Okay this article legitimately made my legs shake.

I think it is safe to say that Donald Trump is clinically insane.

And the only hope for this nation is that the people around him exert some control over his impulses.

If he simply fires those that are doing that, and replaces them with sycophants afraid to correct him or raise objections to his lunatic ravings, we are seriously fucked here.

Robert Mueller better put his investigation on the fast track because as long as Trump is in office this whole country, if not the entire world, remain in serious danger.

So wait, WHAT almost happened with the nuclear football?

Courtesy of Axios:  

On Thursday Nov. 9, when President Trump and his team visited Beijing's Great Hall of the People, Chief of Staff John Kelly and a U.S. Secret Service agent skirmished with Chinese security officials over the nuclear football. 

I've spoken to five sources familiar with the events. Here's what happened, as they describe it: 

When the U.S. military aide carrying the nuclear football entered the Great Hall, Chinese security officials blocked his entry. (The official who carries the nuclear football is supposed to stay close to the president at all times, along with a doctor.) 

A U.S. official hurried into the adjoining room and told Kelly what was happening. Kelly rushed over and told the U.S. officials to keep walking — "We're moving in," he said — and the Americans all started moving. 

Then there was a commotion. A Chinese security official grabbed Kelly, and Kelly shoved the man’s hand off of his body. Then a U.S. Secret Service agent grabbed the Chinese security official and tackled him to the ground. 

The whole scuffle was over in a flash, and the U.S. officials told about the incident were asked to keep quiet about it. Trump's team followed the normal security procedure to brief the Chinese before their visit to Beijing, according to a person familiar with the trip — but somebody at the Chinese end either didn't get the memo or decided to mess with the Americans anyway.

The article goes on to state that at no time did the Chinese have the nuclear football in their possession, but I do not take a whole lot of comfort in that.

It sounds to me like the Trump Administration barely avoided yet another foreign relations nightmare.

This is what happens when a puppet of the Kremlin fills his cabinet with the modern version of the Keystone Kops.

All I have to say is that we NEVER heard stories like this during the Obama Administration.

It does not appear that Rob Porter and White House chief of staff John Kelly have the same story about Porter's resignation.

Courtesy of Axios:  

White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter is telling associates that some senior White House officials strongly encouraged him to "stay and fight," and claims he "never misrepresented anything" to Chief of Staff John Kelly. 

Why it matters: This White House has a culture problem, starting at the top. The natural instinct is to defend/deny and show scant, if any, concern for the women alleging misconduct and harm. And when the going gets tough internally, the other natural instinct is to blame everyone but yourself. 

It should be noted that Trump himself offered this reaction when asked about Porter's resignation:  

"I found out about it recently and I was surprised by it," Trump said. "We certainly wish him well. It's obviously a very tough time for him. He did a very good job while he was in the White House." 

"We hope that he will have a wonderful career," Trump added. 

Trump said "it was very sad when we heard about it." 

Trump focused on Porter's denial of the allegations that he struck his two-ex-wives while they were married. "He says he's innocent, and I think you have to remember that," Trump said. 

"He said very strongly yesterday that he's innocent, but you'll have to talk to him about that."

So essentially Trump was insinuating that the women were liars, and seems very defensive about losing Porter.

But that is NOT the story that Kelly wants told about his reaction:

According to the member of Congress, giving the most detailed Kelly version of events so far: 

In Kelly’s telling, Porter misrepresented to him that the Daily Mail story would be about a messy marriage and divorce, with allegations of verbal and emotional abuse. 

Kelly specifically asked Porter about physical abuse of both ex-wives and girlfriends, and Porter denied that. 

Upon Porter’s denials, Kelly allowed the White House press team to write a statement giving a wholehearted endorsement of Porter as a man of great integrity. (This was Kelly’s initial statement.) 

Kelly is telling associates that only when the Daily Mail story published online on Tuesday night did he learn the real story. 

Kelly says he immediately took action: he confronted Porter, told him he had to resign, then called President Trump to inform him of his decision. This is what Kelly means when he tells colleagues he acted quickly and settled the matter within 40 minutes.

However it should be remembered that this was what Kelly said right after the story of Porter's spousal abuse became public:

"Rob Porter is a man of true integrity and honor and I can't say enough good things about him … I am proud to serve alongside him."

That does not sound like a man who "acted quickly" when he learned that his trusted subordinate had a history of beating the shit out of the women in his life.

By the way even some of Kelly's White House aides are calling bullshit on his version of events.

This Trump White House is almost literally bulging with habitual liars so it is almost impossible to discern who might be telling the truth at any given time.

But in this case I am thinking that Kelly is simply in CYA mode right now, and is lying his ass off to keep his job.

Top White House aide resigns after his two ex-wives come forward with allegations of physical abuse. #MeToo

Senior White House aide Rob Porter physically assaulted two ex-wives, they tell @theintercept. Full story to come in the morning.

His first wife, Colbie Holderness, provided these photos from a vacation they took together in Florence, Italy: pic.twitter.com/tl3TbyGA8Y

— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) February 7, 2018

Courtesy of Politico: 

White House staff secretary Rob Porter, a mostly unknown but deeply influential aide who spends almost every day by President Donald Trump’s side, said Wednesday he plans to resign following abuse allegations from his ex-wives. 

In a pair of reports published by the Daily Mail, Porter’s two ex-wives detailed episodes of verbal and physical abuse. The Daily Mail published a copy of a protective order obtained by Porter’s second wife in 2010, and later published photographs of Porter’s first wife with a black eye she said came from Porter punching her. 

“These outrageous allegations are simply false. I took the photos given to the media nearly 15 years ago and the reality behind them is nowhere close to what is being described,” Porter said in a statement on Wednesday announcing his plans to leave the White House. “I have been transparent and truthful about these vile claims, but I will not further engage publicly with a coordinated smear campaign.” 

Porter said he would delay his departure “to ensure a smooth transition.”

Axios has more:

Porter's first wife, Colbie Holderness, alleged in an interview published Wednesday by the Daily Mail that he kicked her on their honeymoon, progressing to choking and punching her in the face. She provided pictures that were published with the story. 

Porter's second wife, Jennifer Willoughy, told the Daily Mail earlier this week that he pulled her naked from the shower shortly after their first anniversary, and that he was verbally abusive. The Daily Mail also obtained a police complaint from 2010 of Porter allegedly punching the glass on a door at their home, which led to her filing a temporary protective order. 

Willoughy told the Daily Mail that the FBI had interviewed her, along with Holderness. The Daily Mail claimed sources told them that Porter's "dark past" was the reason for his failure to secure security clearances.

Apparently White House chief of staff john Kelly wanted Porter to "stay and fight" and had this to say about him when this news broke:  

"Rob Porter is a man of true integrity and honor and I can't say enough good things about him. He is a friend, a confidante and a trusted professional. I am proud to serve alongside him," Kelly said in a statement.

Yeah a man of true integrity, you know when he's not beating the shit out of one of his wives that is.

By the way guess who Porter has been sleeping with lately.

That's right, Hope Hicks.

Damn, does this girl have seriously bad taste in men!

By the way now that the #MeToo movement has reached this far into the White House, how much longer do we think it will be before it comes for Donald Trump?

Sources say that Trump chief of staff John Kelly may be headed to the chopping block, and that Ivanka is actively searching for his successor.

Courtesy of Vanity Fair:  

Donald Trump’s relationship with John Kelly, his chief of staff, fraught from the beginning, may finally have gone past the point of no return. Two prominent Republicans in frequent contact with the White House told me that Trump has discussed choosing Kelly’s successor in recent days, asking a close friend what he thought about David Urban, a veteran Washington lobbyist and political operative who helped engineer Trump’s victory in Pennsylvania. Ivanka is also playing a central role in the search, quietly field-testing ideas with people. “Ivanka is the most worried about it. She’s trying to figure who replaces Kelly,” a person who’s spoken with her said. 

Kelly’s departure likely isn’t imminent, sources said. “He wants to stay longer than Reince [Priebus],” an outside adviser said. Trump can also hardly afford another high-level staff departure, which would trigger days of negative news cycles. “This could be like [Jeff] Sessions,” one of the Republicans explained, referring to Trump’s festering frustration about not being able to replace his attorney general. 

But the prospect of a Trump-Kelly rupture became more probable as news of their clashes over immigration leaked. Last week, Kelly reportedly infuriated Trump when he told Fox News that Trump had “evolved” on his position to build a southern border wall. Kelly further catalyzed Trump’s ire when he told Democratic lawmakers that Trump was “uninformed” when he made his campaign promise to build the wall. The next morning Trump rebutted his chief of staff with a tweet: “The Wall is the Wall, it has never changed or evolved from the first day I conceived of it.”

No way this should come as a surprise to anybody, Trump simply does not like to be controlled.

And Kelly has been trying to get the White House to run with military like efficiency which has some staffers referring to him as "the Church Lady."

Of course as we have discussed in the past, once someone like Kelly is removed that leaves Trump unsupervised, and like the over grown toddler that he is his impulsivity will be left unchecked and the unraveling of his presidency will only accelerate.

I guess Ivanka better get on the stick.

John Kelly in hot water for suggesting that Donald Trump may have "evolved" on the issue of the border wall.

Don't say anything stupid, don't say anything stupid, don't say anything stupid.

Courtesy of the New York Times:  

President Trump directly contradicted his own chief of staff on Thursday and said his position on building a wall between the United States and Mexico had not “evolved.” 

Mr. Trump’s chief of staff, John F. Kelly, told some Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday that Mr. Trump had “evolved” on the issue of the wall, and that the president was not “fully informed” when he promised to build such a barrier last year. 

In an early-morning Twitter post, Mr. Trump took the unusual step of publicly pushing back against his own White House, signaling a disconnect between the president and his staff at a critical time of negotiations with Congress to avoid a government shutdown.

The Wall is the Wall, it has never changed or evolved from the first day I conceived of it. Parts will be, of necessity, see through and it was never intended to be built in areas where there is natural protection such as mountains, wastelands or tough rivers or water.....

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 18, 2018

....The Wall will be paid for, directly or indirectly, or through longer term reimbursement, by Mexico, which has a ridiculous $71 billion dollar trade surplus with the U.S. The $20 billion dollar Wall is “peanuts” compared to what Mexico makes from the U.S. NAFTA is a bad joke!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 18, 2018

People have been wondering how long John Kelly was going to be able to hang in there before Trump got fed up with him and canned his ass.

This straw may not quite snap that camel's back, but it is certainly going to put a target on Kelly's back for the next time he publicly suggests that his boss may not understand what the fuck he is doing. 

Sources say that Donald Trump personally directed Steve Bannon not to answer questions from the House Intelligence Committee.

Courtesy of Foreign Policy: 

President Donald Trump personally made the decision to curtail the testimony of former chief White House political strategist Steve Bannon before the House Intelligence Committee, according to two people with firsthand knowledge of the matter. 

Trump acted to limit Bannon’s testimony based on legal advice provided by Uttam Dhillon, a deputy White House counsel, who concluded that the administration might have legitimate executive privilege claims to restrict testimony by Bannon and other current and former aides to the president, according to these same sources.

Bannon infuriated both Republicans and Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee by refusing to answer questions this week regarding his role in the presidential transition and later as a White House advisor. Repeatedly during Bannon’s executive session testimony, he and his attorney took numerous breaks to confer via phone with the White House counsel’s office as to what questions he should answer and which ones he would not.

This report seems to explain how chief of staff John Kelly was able to say that the White House did NOT advise Bannon not to answer questions, while Bannon claimed that he was getting direction from the White House.

Apparently Kelly was left out of the loop, and Trump was directly obstructing this investigation on his own.

By the way, everybody seems to agree that these tactics simply will not work when Bannon stands before Robert Mueller's grand jury.

Donald Trump is circumventing attempts to control his behavior by the White House Chief of Staff, with the help of Melania.

I'm going to hold my breath until that mean old John Kelly gives me back my Twitter machine.

Courtesy of New York Magazine:  

White House chief of staff John Kelly’s celebrated efforts to corral his notoriously undisciplined boss may not be 100 percent effective, according to an unsurprising new report in The Wall Street Journal. Apparently, President Trump has been known to summon aides to his private quarters at night to give them assignments, which he then asks them to keep secret from Kelly. 

The Journal also reports that, according to several anonymous sources, Trump sometimes dodges his official call schedules so he can sneak in advice from friends outside the White House. That is, again, to avoid Kelly and Trump’s other minders’ attempts to control who the president talks to and what information he receives. From the other end, Trump’s friends have reportedly been getting around Kelly by passing messages to Trump through the First Lady, who has, according to the Journal, “taken on a more central role as a political adviser” since moving into the White House over the summer. 

The White House didn’t comment on the story, but staffers maintained that Trump and Kelly continue to get along and work well together. Melania Trump’s spokesperson, on the other hand, called the reports “more fake news.” But a more accurate categorization would probably be: “more leaked news that characterizes the president as a mischievous little boy treating the White House as his clubhouse and his advisers like substitute teachers.”

You know I thought people were half joking when they referred to Trump as the Toddler-in-Chief. 

But now that seems to be precisely the correct definition for who he is.

Trump's Chief of Staff John Kelly said that the Civil War had good people on "both sides." Now why does that sound familiar?

Courtesy of the New York Post:  

President Trump’s chief of staff John Kelly on Monday night praised Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee and said that “both sides” in the Civil War fought in good faith. 

Kelly was speaking during an interview on Fox News when he made the comments, defending the historical significance of the Confederacy. 

“Robert E. Lee was an honorable man. He was a man who gave up his country to fight for his state,” Kelly told the network about the Southern general in the bloody war between the North and the South. 

The Civil War was fought after the South seceded from the Union mostly due to a disagreement over slavery. 

“The lack of the ability to comprise led to the Civil War,” Kelly said.

I'm sorry, in the disagreement over whether or not it is right to own another human being, where is the compromise?

Black folks should only be slaves until age eighteen?

Or only every other black person should be owned by a white man?

This "good people on both sides" argument is of course the same one that Trump made after a white supremacist ran over protesters in Charlottesville, and several others were beaten and even shot at.

Apparently this is an official White House talking point when it comes to defending Confederate soldiers and their statues.

I had essentially given up on any idea that John Kelly had any integrity after he attacked and lied about Rep. Frederica Wilson, and this own proves that I was right to do so.

Congresswoman who overheard Trump condolence call staying away from Washington due to death threats.

Courtesy of The Hill: 

Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) reportedly did not return to Washington this week due to threats she's received since her comments about President Trump's call to the widow of a fallen soldier. 

“She’s home,” Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) told the Miami Herald. 

“I have not spoken with her about it, but I’ve heard that she’s received substantial death threats and I think she is doing everything she can to ratchet down and let some of us, including me, take over.” 

The last time Wilson voted was on Oct. 12. 

A source told the newspaper that "nothing else would keep her from voting," adding that there are investigations into the threats she has faced.

Apparently these ramped up after General Kelly falsely accused Wilson of grandstanding during the dedication of an FBI building, and then attempted to shame her for overhearing a phone call that was broadcast on speaker phone while she was in the car on the way to retrieve the body of Sgt. La David Johnson.

So we now live in a country where the White House Chief of Staff activates the Right Wing flying monkeys to go after critics of his boss. 

Of course Rep. Wilson is also a black woman so she was probably already seen as a vulnerable target.

CNN is just not playing the game anymore.

Best banner. 👍🏻 pic.twitter.com/051QZrDWO2

— Jason K. Morrell (@CNNJason) October 20, 2017

There was a time when a news outlet would give the White House the benefit of the doubt on truth telling.

After all most politicians play a little fast and loose with the facts at times.

But now with Trump in office there is simply no reason to continue the facade that they will EVER engage in truthful responses to questions or that they care in any way about being honest with the American people.

Donald Trump doubles down on attack of "wacky" Congresswoman who called him out over insensitive call to Gold Star family even though his Chief of Staff confirmed she was telling the truth.

The Fake News is going crazy with wacky Congresswoman Wilson(D), who was SECRETLY on a very personal call, and gave a total lie on content!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 20, 2017

Courtesy of Raw Story: 

Both the family and Wilson released statements that refute Trump’s take on the call. Wilson is a close friend of the Johnson family and had the late Sgt. La David Johnson in a leadership class as a child. She’s known him for more than 15 years. The Master Sergeant with the family riding to the airport to retrieve the body was the one who received the call. He put it on speakerphone so that the all in the car could hear the call. 

The soldier’s mother confirmed the Congresswoman’s account of the situation. Rather than attack the family of a fallen soldier, however, Trump has chosen to attack a Democratic Congresswoman, calling her “wacky” in his Thursday tweet.

What's even stranger about this is that yesterday Trump's Chief of Staff, John Kelly, admitted that HE was the one who suggested the phrase "He knew what he signed up for" which essentially confirmed that Trump had said it.

And of course the family also backed up Wilson's version of events.

So WHO is the liar here?

John Kelly sacrifices his dignity to protect Donald Trump and to attack the Congresswoman who dared criticize him.

John Kelly confirms that Trump made insensitive remarks to widow of Green Beret. Just wishes no one heard him do it pic.twitter.com/6hfo5ZHAuP

— The Daily Edge (@TheDailyEdge) October 19, 2017

Courtesy of Newsweek: 

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly ripped into a congresswoman who's been at the center of a controversy over a phone call President Donald Trump made to the family of Sgt. La David Johnson, a Green Beret killed in an ambush in Niger on October 4. 

"I was stunned when I came to work yesterday morning and brokenhearted at what I saw a member of Congress doing," Kelly said in an extraordinary White House briefing on Tuesday, referring to Florida Rep. Frederica Wilson who said Trump told the grieving widow that Johnson "he knew what he was getting into," setting off two days of controversy over the president's perceived insensitivity. 

Kelly later described Wilson as an "empty barrel" in a "long tradition of empty barrels making the most noise."

By the way Rep. Wilson was a family friend who was IN the car with the family as they traveled to retrieve the body of this young woman's dead husband as it arrived at the airport. It was the family that put the call on speaker phone.

Kelly then went on to say that HE was the one who told Trump to say that the soldier "knew what he signed up for," which he claims was what he was told by the officer, a family friend, who contacted him after his son was killed in the line of duty.

Kelly's contention was that Trump meant well, but perhaps phrased things indelicately.

Of course that flies in the face of every single thing that we know about Donald Trump.

Kelly also went on to lament the loss of things that were once held "sacred" in this country, such as women, life, religion, and Gold Star families.

Treatment of Gold Star families was once "sacred," Gen. Kelly says; "I think that left in the convention over the summer." pic.twitter.com/C7Ox48iFQN

— CBS News (@CBSNews) October 19, 2017

Of course Kelly seemed to forget that it was his boss who disrespected the Khans, a Gold Star family, during the campaign.

As for women, he just finished attacking a female member of Congress.  (By the way that was even made more egregious by the fact that he essentially confirmed, despite what his boss had said, that she had been telling the truth.)

In his remarks Kelly confirmed that President Obama did not call him after his son died, but said that it was not a bad thing since it is hard for presidents to call everybody especially if there are frequent casualties.

However he failed to mention that he attended a White House hosted Gold Star family breakfast at which he sat at table with Michelle Obama.

It was clear from the outset that Kelly had been sent out to preform clean up duty for Trump.

However to do that Kelly had to reveal that he was essentially comfortably seated in the basket of deplorables who will stick with Donald Trump no matter what he might do, or how he might damage the country. 

And since a number of us were hoping that Kelly was somehow able to exert some control over Trump, that is very troubling to learn.

I am now left questioning John Kelly's integrity, and wondering if he is someone that can be counted on to rein in Trump's worst instincts, or if he is pouring gasoline on the embers of anger and frustration that Trump seems always to have smouldering under the surface?

Word is that Trump's Chief of Staff has already resigned. Possible announcement in today's news dump.

Just heard from good source John Kelly has ALREADY resigned & announcement being held for Friday evening. Can’t confirm by 2nd source though

— Sarah Smith (@SarahLSmith677) October 5, 2017

Rumors swirling around D.C. that Chief of Staff John Kelly has already resigned&they're holding the announcement until the Friday news dump.

— Trump's not my Pres (@Nysteveo2AOLcom) October 5, 2017

John Kelly has resigned, I hear ... (not confirmed) waiting on official word. Another jumps ship. You can't even write this story

— Ac2alLivingScientist (@crktfrog) October 5, 2017

A White House reporter also tweeted this.

Gen. Kelly was originally going to be on AF1 to Vegas with Trump today but was pulled off flight, I'm told.
WH not answering Qs about it.

— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) October 4, 2017

If this is true this would really signal that the White House is essentially falling apart at the seems.

Without Kelly there will be nothing to keep Trump reined in, and there is no telling what he will do once there is nobody controlling him at all.

P.S. By the way late yesterday we learned that Kelly's phone was hacked. 

Chief of Staff blocks Omarosa and other toxic advisers from attending "serious" White House meetings.

Courtesy of The Hill: 

President Trump's chief of staff John Kelly is reportedly freezing out aides to the president he deems unfit for serious meetings, including aide Omarosa Manigault. 

The New York Times reported on Friday that Kelly has created a "no-fly list" of aides who previously wandered into meetings unannounced and uninvited but who no longer have that power. Manigault, the Times reported, is chief among them. 

In charge of this list is Kirstjen Nielsen, Kelly's longtime aide, who was recently appointed as an assistant to the president and his principal deputy. Nielsen is described in the article as "brusque" and "no-nonsense," and in charge of wrangling aides in Trump's outer circle.

Kelly is not fucking around, that's is for damn sure.

Still it is hard to imagine that Trump is going to let him micromanage his life like this for much longer.

Trump LOVES the fact that he is surrounded by internet trolls come to life who share stories from Info Wars with him and shit talk his enemies.

That is his life blood.

I just don't see his Kelly guy lasting to even the end of this year.

And when he is gone, Whoa Nelly is the shit going to hit the proverbial fan. 

White House Chief of Staff blocks Trump from making yet another really bad hiring decision.

Courtesy of the Daily Beast:  

Sheriff David A. Clarke just lost out on yet another Trump administration job—and he has the president’s chief of staff to thank. 

Officials in the West Wing tell The Daily Beast that Clarke had been in consideration for a White House post over the past seven weeks. But on Tuesday, the controversial former Milwaukee County lawman signed on with an outside group instead. He will serve as a spokesman and “senior adviser” for the pro-Trump super PAC America First Action. 

Four sources working in and close to the Trump White House said his failure to land a gig in the West Wing or at the Department of Homeland Security, where Clarke unsuccessfully sought a job earlier this year, was in large part the result of opposition from White House chief of staff John Kelly. Kelly led DHS until late July. 

Though Clarke had been discussed for a possible White House communications or outreach role, Kelly’s position as chief of staff made the arrangement a “non-starter,” as one senior White House official put it. Earlier this year, while serving as DHS Secretary, Kelly had informed Clarke that an appointment to that department would not happen in part due to scandal surrounding the treatment of inmates in Clarke’s jail, and the ensuing negative media attention. According to two sources familiar with the discussions, this led to Clarke formally “rescinding” his intention to join the Trump administration in mid-June.

Damn, Kelly is keeping a tight lid on the White House to keep the cockroaches out.

Clarke is essentially Joe Apraio in blackface, and he would have brought all kinds of unwanted baggage into the White House with him.

Clarke is from the Steve Bannon/Michael Flynn school of outrageous conspiracy theories and has some real doozies of his own that are part of the permanent record.

One has to wonder just how crazy the flood of White House appointees will be once John Kelly tells Trump "no" just one too many times.

But don't worry about ole Sheriff Clarke, he found a soft place to land.

Sheriff Clarke, shut out by Kelly, going to Trump PAC, via sources.

— Glenn Thrush (@GlennThrush) September 5, 2017

Not quite as prestigious as a White House post, but at least he still gets to kiss Trump's ass. 

New White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly, has identified "patient zero" in who triggers Trump the most, Omarosa.

Courtesy of the Daily Beast:

Newly minted White House chief of staff John Kelly has sought to put a dent in the influence of one of President Donald Trump’s most famous advisers: Omarosa Manigault. 

The former Apprentice co-star—who currently serves as the communications director for the Office of Public Liaison—has seen her direct access to the president limited since Kelly took the top White House job in late July, sources tell The Daily Beast. In particular, Kelly has taken steps to prevent her and other senior staffers from getting unvetted news articles on the president’s Resolute desk—a key method for influencing the president’s thinking, and one that Manigualt used to rile up Trump about internal White House drama. 

Multiple sources in and outside the Trump White House told The Daily Beast that, until recently, it was common practice for aides to slide into the Oval Office and distract and infuriate the president with pieces of negative news coverage. Manigault, they say, was one of the worst offenders. 

“When Gen. Kelly is talking about clamping down on access to the Oval, she’s patient zero,” a source close to the Trump administration said.

Apparently Kelly is also screening the materials that make it onto Trump's desk, and has rejected items from the Daily Caller, Breitbart, or Info Wars, which means that Trump's hunger for conspiracy theories is left un-satiated.

Trump's longtime personal bodyguard, and confidant, is also leaving the White House most likely due to Kelly's influence.

Courtesy of CNN: 

President Donald Trump's longtime aide and current director of Oval Office operations Keith Schiller has told people he intends to leave the White House, three sources familiar with the decision told CNN. 

Schiller has told associates within the last two weeks that he plans to leave the White House at the end of September or in early October, the sources said. Schiller has told people his primary reason for leaving was financial, the sources said. Schiller earns a $165,000 annual salary at the White House -- a downgrade from his annual earnings before he followed Trump to the White House. 

Schiller's planned departure comes just over a month after Kelly became chief of staff with the mission of instilling new order inside Trump's often chaotic White House. 

This removes key members of Trump's inner circle, and follows the removal of Steve Bannon, who also fed Trump's baser instincts.

But how long can all of this really last?

Courtesy of the New York Times: 

Like every other new sheriff in town Mr. Trump has hired to turn things around at the White House or in his presidential campaign, Mr. Kelly has gradually diminished in his appeal to his restless boss. What is different this time is that Mr. Trump, mired in self-destructive controversies and record-low approval ratings, needs Mr. Kelly more than Mr. Kelly needs him. Unlike many of the men and women eager to work for Mr. Trump over the years, the new chief of staff signed on reluctantly, more out of a sense of duty than a need for affirmation, personal enrichment or fame. 

“It is inevitable that a guy who will not be contained and does not want to be handled or managed was going to rebel against the latest manager who wanted to control him,” said Roger Stone, the longtime Trump adviser, who believes Mr. Kelly represents a kind of management coup by “the triumvirate” of two powerful retired generals — Mr. Kelly and Jim Mattis, the defense secretary — and one general who is still in the Army, the national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster. 

“Ultimately Donald Trump is his own man, and he’s going to resist all the control and regimented systems Kelly is trying to impose,” Mr. Stone said.

I can only imagine what happens once Trump tires of being handled and fires Kelly.

And unfettered Donald Trump is a batshit crazy Donald Trump and that may be too much Donald Trump for even die hard Trump supporters to stomach.