Report: Mulvaney Was Close To Getting Sacked Before Impeachment Probe Began

Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney answers questions during a briefing at the White House October 17, 2019. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney reportedly faced termination before House Democrats launched the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.

CNN reported on Sunday that top White House officials, such as Jared Kushner, were actively seeking out Mulvaney’s replacement before the impeachment probe began on September 24.

Several unnamed sources told CNN that the officials had found at least two potential candidates, but had to put off the search to deal with the inquiry.

There were reportedly two factors that spared Mulvaney: 1) Trump’s reluctance to have four chief of staffs cycle through his administration and 2) Mulvaney knowing too much about Trump’s efforts to get foreign governments to dig up dirt on Joe Biden — the very foundation of the Democrats’ impeachment inquiry.

White House spokesperson Judd Deere told CNN that Mulvaney “has the President’s confidence” and that his standing in the White House “has not changed.”

On Sunday, Mulvaney told Fox News host Chris Wallace that he “absolutely” did not offer to resign after his disastrous presser this week, during which he admitted Trump had withheld military aid to Ukraine for political gain.

Latest News
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: