President Donald Trump is considering replacing acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney with White House adviser Kellyanne Conway or Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Bloomberg reports.
According to the report, Trump effectively offered the job to Mnuchin a month ago.
“You have such great ideas. Why don’t you be my chief?” Trump told Mnuchin.
Sources in the administration told Bloomberg that Trump made similar remarks to deputy chief of staff Chris Liddell and asked advisers whether they think Conway would be a good fit for the position.
The report comes as Mulvaney faces increasing scrutiny.
“Since last Thursday, Republican lawmakers and conservative commentators have expressed frustration with Mulvaney’s public statements regarding the Ukraine scandal at the heart of House Democrats’ impeachment inquiry, including his damaging performance at a White House news conference,” Politico reported. During the briefing, Mulvaney appeared to admit to a quid pro quo with Ukraine before trying to walk the comments back.
Trump denies:
“Wrong, never even discussed this with Kellyanne Conway or Steve Mnuchin. Just more Fake News!” Trump tweeted on Wednesday.
The White House told The Hill that Mulvaney will remain the chief of staff.
"Mick Mulvaney’s standing in the White House has not changed. He is still the Acting Chief of Staff and has the President’s confidence," deputy White House press secretary Judd Deere told the outlet.
Mulvaney feuding with White House counsel:
Mulvaney has been locked in a feud with White House counsel Pat Cipollone over the impeachment inquiry, CBS News reported.
“Cipollone and his allies within the administration faulted Mulvaney for the botched effort to enlist former South Carolina Congressman Trey Gowdy to join the president's legal defense team to counter the impeachment inquiry,” CBS reported. “Those close to Mulvaney contend Cipollone is a bigger problem, primarily his hard-nosed legal advice — so far accepted by Mr. Trump — to ignore the House impeachment inquiry and refuse all cooperation with requests for documents and witnesses. One Mulvaney ally described Cipollone's maneuvering as a ‘smokescreen for his own malpractice.’”
A source described the feud between the two top White House officials as a “death match.”
