The White House has hired a senior at George Washington University as a top official in the Presidential Personnel Office, filling a role vacated by a veteran of the Bush and Reagan administrations, Politico reports.
James Bacon, 23, will join the PPO as director of operations, answering directly to the office’s newly appointed director, John McEntee. Bacon previously worked in the policy shop of the Department of Transportation and as White House liaison to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, where he became a confidential assistant to Secretary Ben Carson, according to two unnamed administration officials.
As director of operations, Bacon will oversee paperwork and provide assistance in the vetting process.
McEntee, who was President Donald Trump’s personal assistant until his dismissal over undisclosed security concerns, was recently rehired to lead the office that vets presidential appointments and enlists potential administration employees. Politico notes that McEntee has an “unofficial edict to fill the White House with loyalists and get rid of anyone feared to be part of the ‘deep state.’”
One unnamed person close to the White House told Politico that McEntee’s appointment shows that “After three years of allowing others to control who would be around him and have power, [Trump is] trying to take back some of the power and have a say in the staffing in the White House and administration. A lot of the people in there weren’t actual allies of Trump, and didn’t actually support his agenda, but had significant roles in his administration.”
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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