President Donald Trump’s White House is in the midst of an exodus as yet another top aide has ditched the administration for a new job, according to a new report.
White House Director of Cabinet Affairs Lea Bardon, a powerful figure in the background of the MAGA machine, will become executive vice president at Washington, D.C. public affairs firm The Sovereign Advisors, Politico reports.
The firm was founded by Trump’s influential former deputy chief of staff, Taylor Budowich, who joined the growing line of staff leaving the White House when he fled last fall.
Budowich helped craft Trump’s public voice, running communications, cabinet affairs, and speechwriting.
Bardon is the vital link between Cabinet chiefs of staff, through which Trump’s directives emanate throughout the executive branch. She was profiled in the Washingtonian’s D.C. female power list last year.
Budowich’s exit followed a flurry of high-profile departures from the White House. Alex Pfeiffer quietly walked in September last year, having only joined the administration in January. Pfeiffer joined public relations firm Watchtower Strategy.
Pfeiffer worked at Tucker Carlson’s Daily Caller before switching to Fox News, where he helped produce Carlson’s show. He then went on to work in the MAGA Inc. super PAC in 2022.
The new year has continued in a similar vein, with the White House exit experiencing considerable footfall. James Blair, the White House deputy chief of staff, is tapping out temporarily to run Trump’s political operation for the midterms, the president announced on Friday.
“James will be taking a short leave of absence to lead the charge from the outside against the Radical Left, Country Destroying Democrats. He will do a fantastic job, and then, after the Election, return again to the White House, so we can finish the job and, KEEP AMERICA GREAT!” Trump said.
Blair and his superior, Susie Wiles, have reportedly grown concerned that Trump’s war in Iran has threatened his already wavering chances of success during the elections in November.
“When you’re at war, that is 75 percent of your time. This is what [chief of staff Susie Wiles] is gonna be doing, this is what [deputy chief of staff] James Blair will be doing. This is what senior staff will be dealing with. And that is a problem,” an insider said last week, adding that the episode threatens to become a “f-----g nightmare.”
Top Trump allies Kristi Noem and Pam Bondi have been ousted this year, too. Noem, the former Homeland Security secretary, was booted first. She was fired by Trump on March 5 after a controversial 14-month stint at the helm of the department. Noem’s replacement, Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, 48, was confirmed by the Senate last month.
Trump fired Bondi, his attorney general, about a month later, apparently in part because she failed to indict and convict his political enemies.
The White House has been contacted for comment.
