US President Donald Trump has reportedly decided to fire National Security Adviser Herbert Raymond McMaster and is actively involved in consultations for his potential replacements.
The Washington Post reported the news on Thursday, citing five people with knowledge of the plan.
Trump, however, prefers to execute the move in a lengthy process, because he wants to ensure both that the three-star army general is not humiliated and that he can find a strong successor for him, the informed sources said.
According to two informed individuals, Trump recently told White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly that he wants McMaster out and asked for help in finding a replacement for him.
Trump has reportedly complained that McMaster is too rigid and described his reports as too lengthy and irrelevant.
Several candidates are in line of replacement, including former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton and Chief of Staff of the National Security Council Keith Kellogg.
Kellogg accompanies Trump during many domestic trips, and the president reportedly likes his company and thinks he is fun. Trump also likes Bolton who regularly praises the president on Fox News Channel and often agrees with the president’s instincts.
According to 19 presidential advisors and administration officials, who spoke with the US daily on condition of anonymity, the trump administration is in turmoil, as senior counsel and aides in the White House are intensely anxious about their posts and they are openly joking about whose career might end with the next presidential tweet.
The report also pointed to several other senior White House figures whose positions might be at risk.
On Tuesday, Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in a tweet over issues including Iran, Russia and North Korea and replaced him with CIA Director and former congressman Mike Pompeo.
Tillerson joined a long list of senior US officials who have either resigned or been fired since Trump took office in January 2017. Others include FBI Director James Comey, White House senior strategist Steve Bannon, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus, economic adviser Gary Cohn and White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.
The resignations and firings of senior officials is raising concerns in Washington of a coming “brain drain” around the president that will only make it more difficult for him to advance his already languishing policy agenda.