Donald Trump’s communications team appears to be in free fall as both Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Raj Shah – two top figures in the White House – are planning to jump ship, according to CBS News.
“Two of the most visible members of the Trump administration are planning their departures, the latest sign of upheaval in a White House marked by turmoil,” CBS reported on Wednesday.
In addition to the top two communications officials eyeing the exits, the report adds that more departures are expected in the coming weeks and lower-level vacancies in the department will remain unfilled.
In other words, this chaotic, scandal-ridden White House could be on the verge of essentially having no communications department – other than Trump’s rambling Twitter feed.
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More from the report:
Press secretary Sarah Sanders and principal deputy press secretary Raj Shah are both heading for the exits, according to sources inside the White House and close to the administration. Sanders, who has become a confidante of President Trump since the departure of former communications director Hope Hicks, has told friends that she plans to leave the administration at the end of the year.
Shah is also considering his exit, but he has not yet settled on an exact date. Neither Sanders nor Shah immediately responded to repeated requests for comment.
Several other lower-level positions in the communications department left vacant in recent weeks are likely to remain unfilled, with more departures expected in the coming weeks, according to a former official.
Despite the reporting from CBS, other sources report that both Sanders and Shah are likely to remain in their positions for months, even though both have “mused about leaving.”
White House official says Sarah Sanders and Raj Shah are both likely to stay for months. While both of them have mused about leaving, would not expect movement anytime soon.
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) June 14, 2018
In other words, Sanders and Shah might not be leaving now, but they certainly want the world – and maybe even the president – to know they are laying the groundwork.
Or, as April Ryan pointed out, it could be an effort by somebody else in the administration to push this rumor in order to force Sanders out. “They stab each other in the back there!” Ryan said in a tweet.
What we do know is @PressSec has had a lot credibility issues of late and is having a terrible time with the press. So let’s wait and see if someone inside is floating this to get her out. They stab each other in the back there! #elegantexit
— AprilDRyan (@AprilDRyan) June 14, 2018
Lying for the president must be exhausting
Regardless of whether Sanders and Shah leave now or in the distant future, it’s no surprise that more key officials are looking to leave this White House. After all, the Trump administration has already seen unprecedented turnover. Put simply, it’s a miserable place to work.
It must be particularly exhausting, though, for the people who are tasked with lying for the president on a daily basis. With Trump becoming more defiant and unhinged in recent months, it’s only going to get worse for those who remain there.
Not only will more people continue to jump off this Hindenburg disaster of a presidency, but it’s going to be increasingly hard to find anyone willing to replace them.
Sean Colarossi currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and was an organizing fellow for both of President Obama’s presidential campaigns. He also worked with Planned Parenthood as an Affordable Care Act Outreach Organizer in 2014, helping northeast Ohio residents obtain health insurance coverage.
