Trump official Lori Chavez-DeRemer leaves in scandal

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I will remember former Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer less for her tenure than for her accidental deployment of the diminutive “sauvi B” — which no person over 27 should use, especially during the working day.

Chavez-DeRemer resigned on Monday amid an internal investigation into his conduct. In addition to instructing staff to buy her bottles of sauvignon blanc on work trips, Chavez-DeRemer allegedly stocked liquor in her office, encouraged young female staff members to “pay attention” to her father and husband, had an affair with a member of her security detail and arranged work trips to visit family and friends.

It’s a pretty wild story, all told. And while the details are unusual, the broader pattern is not. Over both of his terms, President Donald Trump repeatedly nominated high-level officials who later flamed out amid controversies or clashes with the president himself. In just the past eight weeks, three cabinet-level officials have resigned or been forced out of the administration.

Who’s in, who’s out. trump card before you Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the first face of his mass deportation campaign, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who served as one of Trump’s defense attorneys during his first impeachment trial in 2020. Noem fell out of favor with the president over a $220 million border security ad campaign that featured her prominently (among others more consequential missteps). Bondi was fired about her handling of the Epstein files, which alienated a large segment of Trump’s core base, and her failure to prosecute his political enemies.

They also played musical chairs outside the Cabinet. According to the Brookings Institute, which has White House turnover analyzed back to the Reagan administration, about a third of Trump’s “A Team” — the staff members who hold the highest positions in the Executive Office of the President — have left the White House since last January. While eight of these people were promoted to other positions, 22 resigned or were pressured to do so.

Trump’s turnover record. That turnover rate — 20% in the cabinet and 32% among top executive staff — actually represents a marked improvement from Trump’s first term.

Turnover on the “A team” was then a whopping 92%, according to Brookings, and 14 cabinet members remained over the same period. (Remember Rick Perry? Betsy DeVos? Rex Tillerson? To say nothing of the various former cabinet officials who have since reinvented themselves as Trump critics and pundits.) However, Trump still oversees a fairly volatile staff relative to other presidents; On average, only 10% of the executive staff turns over in a president’s first year.

Trump’s loyalty test. It’s also worth considering why stability has improved in Trump’s second term. The president did not necessarily choose better qualified or qualified staff; he chose more respectful ones. As Reuters reported it a story on Trump’s early search for staff in 2024, “One quality is absolutely paramount: unquestionable loyalty.”

This emphasis on personal loyalty seems to have helped to reduce political disagreements and interpersonal strife in the top levels of the administration. But that didn’t necessarily protect even Trump’s personal friends and associates from getting the axe. Bondi, for example, has known Trump for more than a decade. And another rumored departure – Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick – is Trump’s longtime friend. FBI Director Kash Patel, who has published several fawning children’s books about Trump, could also be on the hood block following.

For example, I will pour them a glass of sauvi B.