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DONALD TRUMP HAS moved to end infighting that has pitted his son-in-law against his chief strategist in an internecine battle over the soul of the White House.
For the briefest of moments yesterday morning, members of his staff looked like they were having fun when smiles and backslapping briefly replaced the tension, chaos and exhaustion of 80 days in Trump’s pressure-cooker White House.
The president’s senior aides – including Reince Priebus, Steve Bannon, Sean Spicer and Kellyanne Conway – were milling around the White House Rose Garden awaiting the historic swearing of Trump’s first Supreme Court Justice under gentle spring sunshine as the Marine Band offered strains of Delibes.
“I’ve always heard that the most important thing that a president of the United States does is appoint people,” Trump said of the major political victory of getting Neil Gorsuch on the bench.
“Hopefully great people like this appointment to the United States Supreme Court.”
And I got it done in the first 100 days.
But during that time, life inside Trump’s administration has been far from idyllic.
Staff in any White House grow weary. But just five percent of the way into Trump’s four-year term, staffers already appear exhausted from near-constant firefighting and drama.
Tears and anger greet each new staff reshuffle, such as the recent rapid departure of deputy chief of staff Katie Walsh.
And then there’s the infighting.
During last year’s campaign, differences between Trump supporters — Republican moderates and hardliners, globalists and nationalists — were papered over by the common goal of defeating Hillary Clinton.
But from day one in the White House, those ideological factions have engaged in backbiting and leaking that is threatening to stall the whole administration.
Every twist and turn, every item of palace intrigue has been lapped up by the media, leaving the impression of a White House adrift.
Decider-in-chief
Trump recently decided enough was enough, ordering Bannon and his son-in-law Jared Kushner – who have come to represent the two centres of White House power – to patch up their differences, according to officials.
In a meeting late last week, the pair tried to reconcile Bannon’s nationalist and populist policies with Kushner’s more globalist and reportedly moderate outlook.
It will be tough going. Both men have garnered enormous influence inside Trump’s White House.
As the president’s chief strategist, Bannon built up power by helping orchestrate Trump’s shock electoral victory.
Such was the value of his stock that he privately boasted early in the administration about virtually handpicking Trump’s cabinet.
Satirists painted him as the grim reaper and in largely Democratic areas of Washington, posters call for the impeachment of “President Bannon.”
He even won a place on the National Security Council — which decides issues of war, peace and foreign policy — although that rare privilege for a political advisor was recently rescinded.
Meanwhile, Kushner’s familial advantage — he is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka — has been boosted by high-profile portfolios from reaching Middle East peace to reforming the federal government.
Kushner has also been helped by the ascendancy of administration moderates such as ex-Goldman Sachs executives Gary Cohn and Dina Powell.
Their emergence has coincided with slow pedaling on some of Trump’s more protectionist trade promises such as withdrawing from NAFTA, imposing far-reaching tariffs and branding China a currency manipulator.
For many Bannon supporters, the Kushnerites are invasive “Democrats” in a Republican White House, thwarting Trump’s promise to aggressively fight for the white working class.
Bannon and Kushner’s feud has become increasingly public in recent weeks, with Bannon’s allies accusing the young real estate heir of leaking stories to make the 63-year-old Bannon look bad.
Meanwhile, Bannon’s former media outfit, the extreme right-wing Breitbart, has launched scathing criticism of Kushner, questioning his failure to separate himself from business interests and describing his “thin resume in diplomacy”.
Addressing Trump’s view of what he called the two sides’ “policy” differences, White House spokesman Sean Spicer said “I think that he recognises that sometimes some of it spills over”.
Managing chaos
Still, some of the White House tensions are by Trump’s own design.
For years as a businessman, he favoured a kind of Spartan survival-of-the-fittest approach to management, something he has extended to his time in the White House.
“The reason the president has brought this team together is to offer a diverse set of opinions,” Spicer said.
He doesn’t want a monolithical kind of thought process going through the White House.
There seems little danger of that. But if Trump fails in his effort to bridge the political differences in his administration, the sunny days in the Rose Garden will be few and far-between.
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Something that bothered me about the last budget was Reilly and Co announcing free GP care to under 5′s, when in fact they haven’t come to any arrangement with GP’s on this yet – none.
What the hell kind of negotiating position does that leave the state, us, in when they sit down for talks?
None. Absolute hogwash. This is one of the reasons we need more business people in politics and not lifelong civil servants and TD’s. No business person would have dreamed of doing that.
Nor might a GP in his right mind…
Very true Paul – they’ll be laughing all the way to the bank after that performance.
And perhaps you’d like to guess who was leading the negotiations for GP”s a few years back under similar circumstances, medical cards,when FF were in Government? You got it, Reilly.
It’s a clear conflict of interest if there ever was one – but when did that stop an Irish politician.
Hard to take FF seriously until they get rid of “old FF”.
By that I mean their leader.
And that moustache tool from Limerick
Don’t forget Dev Óg!!!
Jasus…. still a few of those ol sods still around.
Reilly’s going nowhere soon unfortunately.
Martin, or Minister for reports as he became known, was an unmitigated disaster in the Health brief. If memory serves me right Bertie gave him Martin health to cut the threat of Martin’s popularity down to size, and it worked too.
Martin certainly didn’t ask for the Health portfolio.
Aye luck. Sure Martin was a great fella
Reilly ~ what a smug tool! Absolutely useless should be fired now! Blames everyone & everything for his failures. What a mouth piece he was when in opposition but when gets his chance what does he do?
We all know he’s there cos he stopped Enda getting his pink slip
Speaking of Enda where is wally hiding?
Heard Enda is roaming Ireland looking for debates.
Lol
Do we Leslie..? Or is that just an opinion as usual
Hope he knocks on my door, I’ll bate him for free!!
@ Declan – would you not ask Enda to adopt you?
Im no Reilly Fan or FG fan but Reilly/Fr.Stack isn’t doing worse than previous health ministers.I will give Martin credit for the smoking ban.that was great and I smoked at the time.
Dirty feckers :-))
Fed up with thst excuse of “they left the country in bits” you’ve had 2 and a half years pal, and nowts been done to rectify anything
Come on. It’s gonna take a lot longer than 2 and a half years to sort out the mess FF made of this place.
Hi Leslie – I finally gave up the ghost and changed names. Our old friend was up to his old tricks again, and on another site too, so I’ve decided to not use my own full name anymore, other reasons too I’ll explain some other time. In the interests of transparency though, I said I’d let you know it’s me posting under my middle name instead.
And therein lies the country’s problem. The idea that FG, Labour or indeed anyone could solve the mess FF left behind in just over half a term is laughable.
The health service has been problematic for decades. The question is whether Reilly is adding to the problems or reducing them. I’d say adding to the problems.
Howya niall. Fed up that it takes the journal so long too ban him when you report him. Use a personal pic like I did. He can copy that
I agree Cormac. But Im fed up them using it as an excuse. Come out and say…ok its b*******, gonna take a bit to fix. But this excuse time and again. They say we are out of the woods. If that is the case, then use it to fix stuff then
Well, it’s more my own nephew I’m avoiding. Loaned my computer to a family member and got it back with programs that look for passwords, keyloggers, he installed trojans, remote desktop software – you name it. Closed and changed all my accounts, even 24 hour banking pin numbers – the lot. Took me most of the week to o it. Learned a lesson.
Ouch
Don’t actually think that is what he said in this situation. He meerly questioned the source of critcism which he is entitled to do… Mr Martin has little to know credibility so anything he says should be looked at in that context
@cormac… I admire your optimism. Healthcare has been devastated since the 80s cutbacks, and never properly recovered during the Celtic tiger years. You’re probably right about the 2 and a half year thing, but something’s gotta give. Like steering a boat from a storm, the risk is when it’s broadside. Well, health in Ireland is broadside, and likely to sink unless somebody fixes it quickly.
These tossers are full of crap, tit for tat every week, not one of them can articulate a good idea to get this country operating right ,if a bird had there brain it would fly backwards.
Great profile pic Alan…
Let me guess. … “It’s their fault”.
The three words that fg/lab /ff use as cure all.
Its your fault mike…cos ye slag rogers so much :-)
Haha.. and don’t forget “bitch” lol.
It’s laughable to hear FF and Martin……it’s also getting annoying to hear FG harp back to blame the previous crowd. Come on lads grow up. Ye work for us the taxpayer not the other way around. Do yer fecking job and but the people of this country first.
Ye work for us the taxpayer not the other way around.”
You are joking – Right .
” Do yer fecking job and but the people of this country first.”
- they are doing their job – they are getting the German banks money back for them [ German banks ].
No government on this planet put the people fitrst – except perhaps a few eg Cuba – and look what happened to them . Attacked by USA by sanction , bombs and chemical warfare .
It is the governments job to keep the population in fear – and do what the people who put them in powers [ the Super Rich ] tell them to do .
Eejit
In any walk of life if you wont or cant do your job your out,some one give him a kick in the arse,,,
Not true Sharon ,,some sectors cannot be sacked under any circumstances
I make no apologies for saying it. But that man makes my blood boil.
Just fcuk off ya wealthy fat pig.
It’s all personal, they forget themselves.
Mr Reilly has not a clue – Martin is right and everybody knows it whether you like Martin or not he certainly was not as bad a health minister as Mr Reilly is – even his own boss appears worried about him – mr Reilly stick to the day job and go and take your medical card mess with you
He was far worse in fact..
Please Reilly , share this plan with us plebs, I for one can’t see what your plan is, other than a power grab away from people who should know how to manage the service
both of them earn obscene amounts of money and all we get is mud slinging….disgusting!
michael martin is well within his rights to challenge Reilly,,,,Reilly is no less inept than Reilly,,,,and at least martin didnt cripple the health system altogether with his cuts to the pensioners and terminally ill !!
He just ruined it with the hare-brained scheme that’s the HSE.
Course not. He was throwing 100s of millions at it. That’s why Reilly has to take it out.
there should be no cut backs on a health care system, if it affects the genuine sick
and what has reilly done to either rectify it or make it better ?
What fantasy word are you living in.
a different one to the one you appear to be
The HSE was Martin’s brainchild to try to tidy up the mess that was the health boards. Bring them all into one easily accountable executive was the plan. As usual, it was rushed, and what were pools of muddy water before, suddenly were now a muddier lake.
No health minister since the inception of the state has ever taken on the administrative side of healthcare and done anything close to making it efficient or accountable.
FG & FF – tweedle dum & tweedle dee.
Why don’t they just join together !
Well your gang in FF caused the problem whilst FG sustain it.
All genuine?? All medical card holders are genuine are they?? I am delighted this is being looked at.. Too many cheats out there… Sick of the dependnacy culture in Ireland…
What about liars Declan,are you sick of them too ???
They’re both incapable and useless
While Reilly’s stewardship of Health is far from optimal ( could anyone manage such a monstrosity ), Martin and his lame duck politicking ought to keep his trap shut. He’s from the shower of FF idiot-clowns that damn well destroyed the country and he himself spent god knows how much on ‘reports’ on this,that and the other with very little success during his own tenure as health minister. Suave, vapid waffle, with no substance to it.
Can anyone give me an answer as to why in the name of God do all FG and Lab TDs revert back to the past and what FF done to this country? if they cant do the feckn job get out of government.pack of fools running our country.
They can hardly stand up in the Dail and announce they are incompetent and not up to the job so the next best thing is to use the blame it on the last shower excuse.
Minster O’Reilly is no longer the main man of the Health, little Brendan Howlin is. He is pulling the strings. O’Reilly is the stooge because nobody wants the title of Minster of Angola
Great reply. His back is to the wall here and he still came out fighting. The health portfolio is a poisoned chalice. He is not doing a great job but I do wish him the best of luck with it.
How much do I love the phrase “the profundity of my rotundity”! He’s gone up in my estimation for that ;)
As a tax payer and a voter I want Reilly gone.
The other Gombeens in Govt make me laugh defending Reilly’s incompetence and corruption.
But I suppose birds of a feather flock together.
I’m no fan of FF or Micheal Martin but I’m getting sick and tired of FF and Labour Ministers rolling out the aul “sure wasn’t it yer fault lads” line, every time they are challenged. It’s a strategy FG/LAB continually use to avoid answering the real questions on their own policies and the effect they have had and continue to have on the public.
FG rule book for answering opposition questions. a- blame last government
b- if questions come from SF and not FF bring up the troubles.
If in doubt refer back to part -a-
Excellent.
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