The administration of President Donald Trump has established a record for turnover among cabinet secretaries and senior advisers during a president’s first term, according to a Brookings Institution study. Here’s an updated guide to who’s in and who’s out.
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Cabinet Positions in the Line of Succession
Mike Pompeo
Confirmed by the Senate (57-42)
Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson
Feb. 1, 2017 — March 22, 2018
After a rocky tenure, Tillerson learned he was being ousted when he was shown a presidential tweet announcing his replacement.
Mike Pompeo
April 26, 2018 — Present
Secretary of the Treasury
Steve Mnuchin
Feb. 13, 2017 — Present
Secretary of Defense
James Mattis
Jan. 20, 2017 — Dec. 31, 2018
Mattis resigned after opposing President Trump’s plans to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, then expressed multiple disagreements with Trump.
Patrick Shanahan
Acting Secretary
Jan. 1, 2019 — June 23, 2019
Shanahan withdrew from consideration for confirmation after articles resurfaced decade-old domestic violence incidents within his family.
Mark Esper
July 23, 2019 — Present
Esper was acting secretary from June 24, 2019, until his nomination was submitted on July 15, 2019.
Attorney General
Jeff Sessions
Feb. 9, 2017 — Nov. 7, 2018
Facing long-running presidential criticism since recusing himself from oversight of the Mueller investigation, Sessions resigned at Trump’s request after the 2018 elections.
Matthew Whitaker
Acting Attorney General
Nov. 7, 2018 — Feb. 14, 2019
William Barr
Feb. 14, 2019 — Present
David Bernhardt
Confirmed by the Senate (56-41)
Secretary of the Interior
Ryan Zinke
March 1, 2017 — Jan. 2, 2019
Having been the subject of more than 15 ethics inquiries during his tenure, Zinke “resigned under pressure,” according to the New York Times.
David Bernhardt
April 11, 2019 — Present
Bernhardt was acting secretary from Jan. 1, 2019, until he was confirmed by the Senate on April 11, 2019.
Secretary of Agriculture
Sonny Perdue
April 25, 2017 — Present
Secretary of Commerce
Wilbur Ross
Feb. 28, 2017 — Present
Andrew Puzder
Secretary of Labor
Withdrew as nominee
Alexander Acosta
Confirmed by the Senate (60-38)
Eugene Scalia
Confirmed by the Senate (53-44)
Secretary of Labor
Andrew Puzder
Puzder withdrew after articles revealed he’d employed an undocumented immigrant as a housekeeper and revived claims of spousal abuse (which his ex-wife had recanted).
Alexander Acosta
April 28, 2017 — July 19, 2019
Acosta resigned following controversy over the way he handled a sex crimes case against Jeffrey Epstein when Acosta was a federal prosecutor in Florida a decade earlier.
Eugene Scalia
Sept. 30, 2019 — Present
Alex Azar
Confirmed by the Senate (55-43)
Secretary of Health and Human Services
Tom Price
Feb. 10, 2017 — Sept. 29, 2017
Price stepped down under pressure after a series of articles, by Politico and others, revealed he had spent more than $400,000 on chartered flights.
Alex Azar
Jan. 29, 2018 — Present
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Ben Carson
March 2, 2017 — Present
Secretary of Transportation
Elaine Chao
Jan. 31, 2017 — Present
Dan Brouillette
Confirmed by the Senate (70-15)
Secretary of Energy
Rick Perry
March 2, 2017 — Dec. 1, 2019
Perry’s resignation had been expected but came amid questions about his involvement in the administration’s machinations in Ukraine.
Dan Brouillette
Dec. 11, 2019 — Present
Brouillette was acting secretary from Dec. 2, 2019, until he was confirmed by the Senate nine days later.
Secretary of Education
Betsy DeVos
Feb. 7, 2017 — Present
Robert Wilkie
Confirmed by the Senate (86-9)
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
David Shulkin
Feb. 14, 2017 — March 28, 2018
Shulkin clashed with the administration over VA privatization, a dispute exacerbated by his travel spending, and was fired (he claims) or resigned (the White House claims).
Robert Wilkie
July 30, 2018 — Present
Kirstjen Nielsen
Confirmed by the Senate (62-37)
Kevin McAleenan
Acting Secretary
Chad Wolf
Acting Secretary
Secretary of Homeland Security
John Kelly
Jan. 20, 2017 — July 31, 2017
Kelly departed the Department of Homeland Security to replace Reince Priebus as White House chief of staff.
Kirstjen Nielsen
Dec. 6, 2017 — April 10, 2019
Nielsen resigned after becoming the target of criticism from both the public (for being too harsh) and Trump (for being too lax) in carrying out the administration’s zero-tolerance policy.
Kevin McAleenan
Acting Secretary
April 11, 2019 — Nov. 13, 2019
Chad Wolf
Acting Secretary
Nov. 13, 2019 — Present
Cabinet-Rank Positions
Reince Priebus
Chief of Staff
No Senate confirmation required
John Kelly
Mick Mulvaney
Acting Chief of Staff
Chief of Staff
Reince Priebus
Jan. 22, 2017 — July 28, 2017
Priebus was ousted after six months as chief of staff, during which he was criticized for failing to quell chaos in the White House.
John Kelly
July 31, 2017 — Dec. 31, 2018
The former Marine general was initially praised for imposing order in the White House but went on to clash with his boss.
Mick Mulvaney
Acting Chief of Staff
Jan. 2, 2019 — Present
Director of the Office of Management and Budget
Mick Mulvaney
Feb. 16, 2017 — Present
Mulvaney continues to lead OMB while serving as acting White House chief of staff. (He also served a temporary stint as head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.)
Andrew Wheeler
Confirmed by the Senate (52-47)
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
Scott Pruitt
Feb. 17, 2017 — July 5, 2018
Pruitt resigned, according to the Washington Post, “after controversies over his lavish spending, ethical lapses and management decisions eroded the president’s confidence” in him.
Andrew Wheeler
Feb. 28, 2019 — Present
Wheeler was acting administrator from July 7, 2018, until he was confirmed by the Senate on Feb. 28, 2019.
Trade Representative
Robert Lighthizer
May 15, 2017 — Present
Ambassador to the United Nations
Nikki Haley
Jan. 25, 2017 — Dec. 31, 2018
Haley’s resignation surprised many in the administration, according to press accounts. She cited a desire to return to the private sector.
Jonathan Cohen
Acting Ambassador
Jan. 1, 2019 — Sept. 12, 2019
Kelly Craft
Sept. 10, 2019 — Present
Administrator of the Small Business Administration
Linda McMahon
Feb. 14, 2017 — April 12, 2019
McMahon stepped down, according to Politico, to become chair of the super PAC America First Action, which supports Trump’s reelection.
Chris Pilkerton
Acting Administrator
April 13, 2019 — Jan. 15, 2020
Jovita Carranza
Jan. 15, 2020 — Present
Other Top Positions
Steve Bannon
Senior Counselor and Chief Strategist
No Senate confirmation required
Senior Counselor and Chief Strategist
Steve Bannon
Jan. 22, 2017 — Aug. 18, 2017
Bannon departed after multiple conflicts with Trump and others. His position was not filled.
Joseph Maguire
Acting director, pending Senate confirmation
Director of National Intelligence
Dan Coats
March 16, 2017 — Aug. 15, 2019
Coats and Trump, according to press accounts, had a fraught relationship and disagreed over Russia, North Korea and Iran. Coats eventually stepped down.
Joseph Maguire
Acting director, pending Senate confirmation
Aug. 16, 2019 — Present
Gina Haspel
Confirmed by the Senate (54-45)
Director of the Central Intelligence Agency
Mike Pompeo
Jan. 23, 2017 — April 26, 2018
Pompeo left the CIA directorship to become secretary of state.
Gina Haspel
May 21, 2018 — Present
Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission
Jay Clayton
May 4, 2017 — Present
Mike Flynn
National Security Adviser
No Senate confirmation required
H.R. McMaster
John Bolton
Robert O’Brien
National Security Adviser
Mike Flynn
Jan. 22, 2017 — Feb. 13, 2017
Flynn resigned less than a month into his tenure and later pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about conversations he had with the Russian ambassador before taking office.
H.R. McMaster
Feb. 20, 2017 — April 9, 2018
McMaster and Trump, according to numerous press accounts, never developed a personal rapport, leading to McMaster’s departure just over a year after he arrived.
John Bolton
April 9, 2018 — Sept. 10, 2019
Bolton and Trump sparred over policy on Iran, North Korea and Afghanistan. Ultimately, Trump tweeted that he had fired the adviser; Bolton insisted that he resigned.
Robert O’Brien
Sept. 18, 2019 — Present
Donald McGahn
White House Counsel
No Senate confirmation required
Pat Cipollone
White House Counsel
Donald McGahn
Jan. 20, 2017 — Oct. 17, 2018
Trump announced McGahn’s voluntary departure but denied media reports suggesting the exit was accelerated because of McGahn’s cooperation with special counsel Robert Mueller.
Pat Cipollone
Dec. 10, 2018 — Present
Stephen Miller
Senior Policy Adviser
No Senate confirmation required
Senior Policy Adviser
Stephen Miller
Jan. 22, 2017 — Present
Kellyanne Conway
Counselor
No Senate confirmation required
Counselor
Kellyanne Conway
Jan. 22, 2017 — Present
Thomas Bossert
Homeland Security Adviser
No Senate confirmation required
Douglas Fears
Peter Brown
Homeland Security Adviser
Thomas Bossert
Jan. 22, 2017 — April 10, 2018
Bossert was pushed out by national security adviser John Bolton, according to press accounts.
Douglas Fears
June 1, 2018 — July 2019
Fears left the position for family reasons, Bloomberg reported, and returned to the Coast Guard, where he has spent much of his career.
Peter Brown
Summer 2019 — Present
Peter Navarro
Trade Czar
No Senate confirmation required
Trade Czar
Peter Navarro
Jan. 20, 2017 — Present
Sean Spicer
Press Secretary
No Senate confirmation required
Sarah Huckabee Sanders
Stephanie Grisham
Press Secretary
Sean Spicer
Jan. 22, 2017 — July 21, 2017
Spicer resigned abruptly after Trump appointed Anthony Scaramucci above him as communications director. (Scaramucci held the job for 10 days.)
Sarah Huckabee Sanders
July 21, 2017 — July 1, 2019
Sanders resigned to be with her family in Arkansas, ending a tenure marked by confrontations with reporters and the cancellation of the daily White House press briefing.
Stephanie Grisham
July 1, 2019 — Present
Sean Spicer
Communications Director
No Senate confirmation required
Michael Dubke
Sean Spicer
Acting Director
Anthony Scaramucci
Hope Hicks
Bill Shine
Stephanie Grisham
Communications Director
Sean Spicer
Jan. 22, 2017 — March 6, 2017
Spicer, initially named both press secretary and communications director, was seen as overwhelmed by the dual roles, according to press accounts, and was replaced as communications director.
Michael Dubke
March 6, 2017 — June 9, 2017
Dubke, portrayed as an outsider entering a maelstrom in the early months of the Trump White House, resigned after three months.
Sean Spicer
Acting Director
June 9, 2017 — July 21, 2017
Spicer was replaced as communications director and then resigned as press secretary immediately afterward.
Anthony Scaramucci
July 21, 2017 — July 31, 2017
Scaramucci’s tenure as director ended soon after a profane interview, in which he disparaged a number of colleagues, in The New Yorker.
Hope Hicks
Aug. 16, 2017 — March 29, 2018
Hicks, widely seen as having a rapport with Trump that others lacked, stabilized the role before leaving and then taking an executive position at 21st Century Fox.
Bill Shine
July 5, 2018 — March 8, 2019
Shine, who lacked chemistry with Trump and did little to improve the president’s news coverage, colleagues told The New York Times, resigned to work on Trump’s reelection campaign.
Stephanie Grisham
July 1, 2019 — Present
Jared Kushner
Senior Adviser
No Senate confirmation required
Senior Adviser
Jared Kushner
Jan. 22, 2017 — Present
Carl Icahn
Special Regulatory Adviser
No Senate confirmation required
Special Regulatory Adviser
Carl Icahn
Jan. 20, 2017 — Aug. 18, 2017
Icahn left shortly before the publication of a New Yorker article that suggested he had used the role to benefit himself, an accusation that Icahn denied.
Correction, Jan. 16, 2020: This guide originally misstated the date Mike Pompeo became secretary of state. It was April 26, 2018, not May 2, 2018.
Correction, Jan. 17, 2020: This guide originally misstated the year Jovita Carranza was appointed. It was 2020, not 2019.
Rex Tillerson photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images; Mike Pompeo photo by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call; Steve Mnuchin photo by Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images; James Mattis photo by Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images; Patrick Shanahan photo by Martin H. Simon - Pool/Getty Images; Mark Esper photo by Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images; Jeff Sessions photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images; Matthew Whitaker photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images; William Barr photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Ryan Zinke photo by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call; David Bernhardt photo by Katherine Frey/The Washington Post via Getty Images; Sonny Perdue photo by Jason Getz/Getty Images; Wilbur Ross photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images; Andrew Puzder photo by Joe Kohen/Getty Images; Alexander Acosta photo by AP Photo/Evan Vucci; Eugene Scalia photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images; Tom Price photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images; Alex Azar photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images; Ben Carson photo by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call; Elaine Chao photo by Wang He/Getty Images; Rick Perry photo by Fred Lee/ABC via Getty Images; Dan Brouillette photo by Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images; Betsy DeVos photo by Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call; David Shulkin photo by Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images; Robert Wilkie photo by Oliver Contreras/SIPA USA via AP Images; John Kelly photo by Dina Rudick/The Boston Globe via Getty Images; Kirstjen Nielsen photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images; Kevin McAleenan photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images; Chad Wolf photo by Alex Brandon/AP Photo; Reince Priebus photo by T.J. Kirkpatrick/Getty Images; Mick Mulvaney photo by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call; Scott Pruitt photo by Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/AFP/Getty Images; Andrew Wheeler photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images; Robert Lighthizer photo by Skadden; Nikki Haley photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Jonathan Cohen photo by Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images; Kelly Craft photo by Selcuk Acar/NurPhoto via Getty Images; Linda McMahon photo by Richard Messina/Hartford Courant/MCT via Getty Images; Jovita Carranza photo by Susan Walsh/AP Photo; Steve Bannon photo by Dominick Reuter/AFP/Getty Images; Dan Coats photo by Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call; Joseph Maguire photo by Marcus Tappan/AFP via Getty Images; Gina Haspel photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images; Jay Clayton photo by Sullivan & Cromwell, LLP via YouTube; Mike Flynn photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images; H.R. McMaster photo by AP Photo/Susan Walsh; John Bolton photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images; Robert O’Brien photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images; Donald McGahn photo by Mary Altaffer/AP Photo; Pat Cipollone photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images; Stephen Miller photo by Paul Sancya/AP Photo; Kellyanne Conway photo by Chris Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Thomas Bossert photo by Atlantic Council; Peter Navarro photo by Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Sean Spicer photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images; Sarah Huckabee Sanders photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Stephanie Grisham photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images; Michael Dubke photo by AP Photo/Andrew Harnik; Anthony Scaramucci photo by Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images; Hope Hicks photo by Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images; Bill Shine photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic; Jared Kushner photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images; Carl Icahn photo by Heidi Gutman/CNBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images.