December 11, 2018

No One Wants to Be Trump’s Chief of Staff. Trump Claims Fake News.

“Many, over ten, are vying for and wanting the White House Chief of Staff position.”

Joyce N. Boghosian/ZUMA

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As the White House scrambles to name a replacement for outgoing Chief of Staff John Kelly, President Donald Trump on Tuesday denied reports he is having difficulty filling the once-highly coveted position. He also, without evidence, accused the media of “purposely” misreporting the details of the search.

“Fake News has it purposely wrong,” he tweeted. “Why wouldn’t someone want one of the truly great and meaningful jobs in Washington.” He claimed that more than 10 candidates are currently vying for the gig, though it’s unclear who these job-seekers are.

The president’s struggle to fill the position is likely due in part to his own self-professed penchant for conflict among his staff, as well as his noted refusal to be constrained by more orderly processes. “I like conflict. I like having two people with different points of view,” Trump said back in March amid reports of heightened chaos in the West Wing. “I like watching it. I like seeing it.”

Trump’s Tuesday tweet comes days after his rumored top choice for the position, vice presidential chief of staff Nick Ayers, declined to take the job. The decision reportedly shocked the president and has since left the White House without a backup plan. “There was no Plan B, and whoever advised him that Nick Ayers was the right person and would accept the job did the president a grave disservice,” Steve Bannon told the Washington Post.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reports several of Trump’s aides are frustrated with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, who had been campaigning for months to replace Kelly—apparently without a fully formed plan to do so.

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Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

payment methods

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