Trump White House exodus continues after Karoline Leavitt’s bombshell announcement
President Donald Trump’s main liaison to Congress will leave the White House a week after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced her exit.
The president announced on Thursday that James Braid would exit the White House in September. Braid is a close ally of Vice President JD Vance, working in Vance’s Senate office.
Specifically, the president highlighted how Braid navigated working with a tight majority in the House of Representatives to pass the One Big, Beautiful Bill that extended the tax cuts from Trump’s first term and beefed up funding for immigration enforcement as well as GENIUS Act, Trump’s major cryptocurrency legislation.
“James has played a critical role in our many accomplishments with Congress, including THE ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL, beating the Democrats in two shutdown showdowns, passing the GENIUS Act, defeating a record number of War Powers resolutions, and the confirmation of my Cabinet at the fastest rate in decades,” Trump said. “This has been, and will continue to be, the most successful Republican Congress in History. Thank you, James, for your service to our Nation!”
The president’s legislative agenda has been surprisingly thin since the passage of the massive spending bill. Despite Trump getting almost all of his cabinet nominations approved and a slew of judicial nominees confirmed, he has failed to pass his major priority: The SAVE America Act, which would require identification cards to vote and proof of citizenship upon registering to vote.
The president had suggested that the Senate cancel its August recess to pass the legislation, Republican Senate Minority Leader John Thune refused.
But Braid’s exit comes as Democrats are poised to win back the majority control of the House of Representatives.
