Politics

President Trump and John Kelly reportedly reach a 'truce,' but signs still point to White House turmoil

Key Points
  • President Trump and chief of staff John Kelly have reached a "truce" in their tumultuous relationship, at least for the moment, the WSJ reports.
  • The newspaper says Trump and Kelly met Thursday and that both came away from it feeling positive about their working relationship.
  • An administration official told CNBC that it seems like things are calming down at the White House on Friday, although it could change without notice.
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Speculation continues on White House re-shuffling

President Donald Trump and his chief of staff, John Kelly, have reached a "truce" in their tumultuous relationship, at least for the moment, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The newspaper said Trump and Kelly met Thursday and both came away feeling positive about their working relationship, which has reportedly been strained for almost as long as Kelly has held the chief of staff position. He took over after Trump fired Reince Priebus in late July.

The report comes during a flood of stories about turmoil and staff turnover in the Trump administration. Thursday night, The Washington Post and several other outlets reported that the president had decided to oust Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster as his national security advisor, although the White House pushed back, saying "there are no changes" at the National Security Council.

Observers think Friday could mark another day of chaos and turnover for the White House, following other high-profile departures. A White House official, who declined to be named, told CNBC that it seems like things are calming down after the recent tumult.

"Everything seems pretty chill this morning," said the official – who also cautioned that things could change without notice.

Earlier this week, Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson via Twitter, and the president appointed Larry Kudlow as his top economic advisor days after Gary Cohn quit the job. On Monday, Trump's personal assistant, John McEntee, was escorted from the White House grounds after an investigation found that he was a security risk due to his gambling habits, The Washington Post reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment about the WSJ's report about Kelly. Press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told the Journal: "Kelly is not going anywhere."

Read the full Wall Street Journal report here.

CNBC's Eamon Javers contributed to this report.

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