There has been so much turnover in President Donald Trump’s administration that an internet sportsbook has posted odds on who is next out the door at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Betting sites put National Security Advisor HR McMaster as the favorite, paying off at +150 when the announcement came on Thursday that indeed he was gone.
The new frontrunners, according to online sportsbook BetDSI:
Embattled Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has butted heads with the president on several occasions, is at +175. Sarah Huckabee, the president’s press secretary, is a distant third at +600.
Trump has replaced cabinet members like most people change socks. He has currently either fired or accepted the resignation of 16 people at the White House and another five others associated with the administration.
Historic Numbers
The first year of President Trump’s White House has seen more firings, resignations, and reassignments of top staffers than any other first-year administration in modern history. His cabinet turnover exceeds that of any other administration in the past 100 years.
The president defends his management style and said that he often ruffles feathers. Before becoming Commander in Chief, Trump hosted Celebrity Apprentice, where his catch phrase was, “You’re fired!”
At a recent news conference, President Trump tried to explain why confrontation and animosity work for him.
“I like conflict,” Trump said. “I like having two people with different points of view. And I certainly have that. And then I make a decision. But I like watching it. I like seeing it. And I think it’s the best way to go.”
He also denied that people don’t want to be part of his administration.
“Believe me, everybody wants to work in the White House,” he said. “They all want a piece of the Oval Office. They want a piece of the West Wing.”
White House Departures Follow Twitter Controversies
The mantra of staffers that states, “I serve at the pleasure of the president,” never has rung more true. Trump has a long list of employees who have left, many seemingly on a whim.
McMaster was just the latest to go. The three-star lieutenant general had clashed with Trump on a variety of issues. Rumors of his ouster had been circulating for weeks.
Sec. of State Rex Tillerson, who once called his former boss a “moron,” also was shown the door earlier this month, reportedly first informed via Twitter.
“Rex and I have been talking about this a long time,” Trump said. “We were not really thinking the same.”
Chief strategist Steve Bannon’s departure was even more contentious. Trump supposedly accused the former editor at the conservative website Breitbart of undermining his leadership. When Bannon was removed, Trump was extremely vindictive in his remarks.
“Steve Bannon has nothing to do with me or my Presidency,” Trump wrote. “When he was fired, he not only lost his job, he lost his mind.”
Two recent controversies could see a longshot stepping down. The first is Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. She recently gave an interview with 60 Minutes and had a hard time grasping basic questions about her job. It was the type of embarrassment the president might not have patience for, and notable that he had no tweets applauding her appearance. She is listed at +2000 to be next out of the White House.
The second longshot worth a look recently is Ben Carson. The former Republican presidential candidate is Trump’s Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Carson recently admitted his office spent $31,000 (of taxpayer money) for a dining room set in his office. Carson, who is at +1500, blamed his wife for the expenditure and might be able to weather the storm with Trump.
In the role of national security advisor, a position initially held by convicted felon and former general Michael Flynn, it was announced on Thursday that McMaster will be replaced by former US Ambassador to the UN and regular Fox News contributor John Bolton. As of publication time, odds of Bolton’s sticking around hadn’t yet been added to the list of who’s next through the White House’s apparent revolving door.