Trump's Friend Says President Will Be Making 'One or Two' Final Changes to Government
JENNI FINK | MAR 25, 2018 | 1:11 PM
During an interview on ABC News' “This Week,” Christopher Ruddy, the founder and CEO of Newsmax, said President Donald Trump will be making a couple more changes to his administration.
Ruddy told Martha Raddatz that his friend, the president, is “perplexed by all these reports that there’s chaos at the White House or mass staff changes.”
In contrast to the media reports, Trump reportedly told Ruddy that he believes the White House is “operating like a smooth machine.”
He added that White House sources, but not Trump, told him Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin is on the way out, which, if true, would corroborate multiple reports.
According to Ruddy, that doesn't mean every report bears truth, though. He said:
“But other reports, people like [Housing and Urban Development Secretary] Ben Carson, I'm told that the president is happy with the job he's doing, he will be staying; Chief of Staff [John] Kelly, the president is happy with the job he is doing, he will be staying.”
However, the Newsmax CEO shared that Trump also told him, “he’s expecting to make one or two major changes to his government very soon and that’s going to be it.”
Gage Skidmore/Flickr
The interview came on the heels of the firing of former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who Ruddy classified as someone who “didn't click” with Trump.
“He didn’t have the political smarts of — for someone to run the State Department, never engaged with his own staff at the State Department,” he said.
In contrast, Ruddy lauded Trump's choice of Defense Secretary General James Mattis and CIA Director Mike Pompeo, who was nominated to replace Tillerson.
He also called National Economic Council Director nominee Larry Kudlow and National Security Advisor-designate John Bolton “very experienced guys” who are “going to do a tremendous job for the president and the country.”