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Jan 14, 2025

POLITICO'S West Wing Playbook: Transition of Power

By Megan Messerly, Dasha Burns, Eli Stokols and Ben Johansen

Presented by

Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the preparations, personnel decisions and policy deliberations of Donald Trump’s transition. POLITICO Pro subscribers receive a version of this newsletter first.

STEVE BANNON isn’t going to the White House. He might even be going back to jail.

Still, President-elect DONALD TRUMP’s former chief strategist is one of a handful of longtime loyalists with big personalities who plan to champion the MAGA cause from outside 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. And even without official power, they will likely play a key role in shaping a second Trump administration, including by using their bully pulpits to rally the “America First” portions of the Trump coalition, promote Trump’s agenda and push back against factions in the Republican Party they consider impure.

It’s a point Bannon underscored speaking at a POLITICO event Tuesday morning, where he opined on an array of subjects from a “100 percent moratorium on all immigration” to Trump’s coming “days of thunder” — a sequel to the early “shock and awe” days of Trump’s first term.

His headline grabbing comments are the latest example of how mainstays in Trump world never leave his orbit — even when they appear to go away. During the event, Bannon name checked several other MAGA firebrands who won’t be officially joining the administration but who he also expects to play key roles in shaping the MAGA agenda: COREY LEWANDOWSKI, DAVID BOSSIE, JASON MILLER and BORIS EPSHTEYN.

It’s a list of, er, shall we say livelier personalities from the first Trump administration, some of whom have enemies even inside Trump’s inner circle.

A source close to the transition said each of the individuals Bannon named decided for their own reasons not to join the administration. But Bannon argued it also reflects incoming chief of staff SUSIE WILES’ desire for a more professional White House and her efforts to keep any infighting outside the Oval Office. (It’s also worth noting that Bannon and others of his ilk would have a tough time getting confirmed in the Senate if Trump had wanted them for any of the biggest ticket jobs.)

“[Trump is] going to be the man he is, and the leader that he is, and he is going to do what he wants to do, but I think the limitations on the outside noise, on the distractions, on the things that aren’t helpful to the administration will be minimized,” said one Trump ally, granted anonymity to speak candidly about the new administration. “There will be some. It’s not a perfect world, but they’ll be dealt with, and they’ll be dealt with professionally. Those distractions won’t happen a second time.”

“I really feel comfortable that this administration, this White House, I’m hopeful it’ll bring back the days of like a Jim Baker White House,” the person added.

Bannon hit on this point Tuesday morning, saying that under Wiles’ leadership, the White House won’t have the “contentious, in-the-open fighting that we had” during Trump’s first term — but that it won’t be closed off either.

“Many of the strongest personalities in President Trump's orbit are not going in the White House,” Bannon noted. “I see some pattern recognition there. And I think all of those people are going to be very strong voices on the outside and whatever vertical they're in.”

Already, it’s unclear exactly what kind of access the president-elect’s latest companion and Bannon nemesis ELON MUSK will have to Trump once he moves to Washington. Musk and VIVEK RAMASWAMY — two newcomers to the MAGA coalition — were chosen by Trump to lead an unofficial “Department of Government Efficiency,” tasked with cutting government spending.

But as DOGE isn’t a real department, Musk and Ramaswamy aren’t official Cabinet members, something that would give them permanent access to the White House. That means it may be harder for Musk to get an audience with Trump compared to the relatively unfettered access he has had the last couple of months by renting out a Mar-a-Lago cottage.

The Trump transition team isn’t weighing in on Bannon’s comments, but Wiles has previously spoken in no uncertain terms that drama is not welcome at the White House.

"I don't welcome people who want to work solo or be a star," Wiles told Axios earlier this month. "My team and I will not tolerate backbiting, second-guessing inappropriately, or drama. These are counterproductive to the mission."

If Wiles succeeds at achieving this tall order, the White House will likely see far less turnover than it did during the first Trump administration, which was a revolving door of not only low level staffers but senior level officials, like Bannon, who was fired by Trump in 2017. Trump 1.0 saw former chiefs of staff try to keep some of the party’s more insurgent elements away by firing them or banishing them from the White House — only to see them work their way back into the then-president’s brain trust.

Bannon is hoping Wiles strikes a middle ground.

“I think Susie's smart enough because you've seen already on the campaign and, so far in the transition, she doesn't try to go John Kelly on you. She doesn't try to hermetically seal the president because he can't be hermetically sealed,” Bannon added.

Still, Trump allies concede one fundamental truth still holds: One’s place in Trump’s inner circle is never a sure thing.

MESSAGE US — Are you SUSIE WILES? We want to hear from you. And we’ll keep you anonymous! Email us at westwingtips@politico.com.

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A message from McKinsey & Company:

McKinsey & Company has provided nonpartisan support to help guide federal and state transitions for more than 70 years. Through insights, trainings and playbooks, McKinsey helps leaders navigate their first 100 days with confidence and clarity. Learn more.

POTUS PUZZLER

Who was the first president to address the Senate using its “upon proper written notice” clause?

(Answer at bottom.)

Pro Exclusive

Biden approved LA wildlife aid. But Trump will control spending, via our THOMAS FRANK and SCOTT WALDMAN

Sen. Martin Heinrich seeks delay to Chris Wright’s hearing over paperwork, via our ANDRES PICON

Monica Bertagnolli to step down as NIH director, via our ERIN SCHUMAKER

The reporting in this section is exclusively available to POLITICO Pro subscribers. Pro is a personalized policy intelligence platform from POLITICO. If you are interested in learning more about how POLITICO Pro can support your team through the 2024 transition and beyond, visit politicopro.com.

Heads up, we're all transition all the time over on our live blog: Inside Congress Live: Transition of Power. Bookmark politico.com/transition to keep up with us.

THE BUREAUCRATS

WITH FRIENDS LIKE THESE ... MICHAEL ALLEN, a longtime Republican national security expert, was recently ousted as the “sherpa” for CIA director nominee JOHN RATCLIFFE because he had co-hosted a campaign fundraiser for top Trump critic LIZ CHENEY, our DANIEL LIPPMAN reports.

Allen, who worked on the fundraiser in early 2021, had already begun organizing Hill meetings for Ratcliffe when he was pushed from his role in recent weeks.

One transition official told POLITICO that Allen did a “fine job” in supporting Ratcliffe’s nomination and that his work had been mostly wrapped up by the time he was forced out.

GETTING FEISTY: The confirmation hearing for controversial Defense secretary nominee PETE HEGSETH kicked off this morning — and Democrats pulled no punches, our JOE GOULD and CONNOR O’BRIEN report. Sen. JACK REED (D-R.I.), the committee’s top Democrat and a typically mild-mannered senator, directly told Hegseth: “I do not believe that you are qualified to meet the overwhelming demands of this job.”

The nominee kept his cool even as Senate Democrats repeatedly expressed concerns about his ability to lead DoD, citing allegations of misconduct against him, his past financial mismanagement and his views on diversity.

Sen. JEANNE SHAHEEN (D-N.H.) ripped into Hegseth over his published work questioning the role of women in the military. “Why should women in our military, if you were the secretary of Defense, believe that they would have a fair shot and an equal opportunity to rise through the ranks?” Shaheen asked.

Hegseth responded that his comments were “not about the capabilities of men and women. It’s about standards,” which he argued have been eroded in certain jobs and missions.

“Well, I appreciate your eleventh-hour conversion,” Shaheen shot back.

Hegseth can still be confirmed despite Democrats’ attacks as long as Republicans remain united.

OVER AT COMMERCE: HOWARD LUTNICK, Trump’s pick to be Commerce secretary, is the latest Cabinet contender to have his confirmation held up by paperwork delays, our BEN LEONARD reports. “It will be soon,” said Sen. TED CRUZ (R-Texas), the chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, in a brief interview. “We’re waiting on the paperwork to be completed.”

Cruz, whose panel has oversight over the Commerce Department and will be handling Lutnick’s confirmation process, has yet to schedule his hearing.

STILL NOT CONVINCED: Sen. JOHN CURTIS (R-Utah), MITT ROMNEY’s moderate replacement, shared pointed concerns Tuesday about one of Trump’s top national security nominees, TULSI GABBARD. At a POLITICO Live event, Curtis said that Gabbard had not done enough to win his vote for confirmation as director of national intelligence, our URSULA PERANO reports.

"The biggest problem for me is she's been so low-profile," he said. "The others have come to my office and so if you go back to that analogy of a sheet of music, her sheet's pretty blank for me. I need more information to start filling that in, and, look, if I can't fill that in, I can't vote for her."

Curtis separately said he remained undecided about Hegseth’s nomination as Defense secretary.

PASSING ON THIS ONE: Former first lady MICHELLE OBAMA will skip Trump’s inauguration on Monday, our SHIA KAPOS reports.

“This is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, given our profound disagreements with the Republican ticket on a whole host of issues,” former President BARACK OBAMA said in a statement announcing Michelle’s decision not to attend. “In a country as big and diverse as ours, we won’t always see eye-to-eye on everything. But progress requires us to extend good faith and grace — even to people with whom we deeply disagree.”

The former president said he plans on attending the ceremony.

A message from McKinsey & Company:

Agenda Setting

MOVE OVER, IRS: Trump on Tuesday said he will create a new agency called the External Revenue Service to collect tariffs and other forms of revenue that come from foreign sources, echoing a suggestion made by former Trump strategist STEVE BANNON at a POLITICO event earlier that morning, our ARI HAWKINS reports.

“For far too long, we have relied on taxing our Great People using the Internal Revenue Service,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Through soft and pathetically weak Trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves … I am today announcing that I will create the EXTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE to collect our Tariffs, Duties and all Revenue that come from Foreign sources.”

What We're Reading

Stress Test (Margaret MacMillan for Foreign Affairs)

Marco Rubio Isn’t Likely to Last Long as Secretary of State (POLITICO’s Nahal Toosi)

How healthy are Donald Trump’s nominees? (POLITICO’s Jordain Carney and Ursula Perano)

POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER

In 1964, President HARRY TRUMAN celebrated his 80th birthday by making his return to the Senate chamber. As a senator in the mid-1930s, Truman proposed allowing former presidents the privilege to speak on the Senate floor to discuss pending legislation. And in 1963, the Senate modified its rules to incorporate a more restrictive version of Truman’s earlier proposal, allowing former presidents to address the body “upon proper written notice.”

Thanks to Adrian Swann for this question!

A CALL OUT! Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents, with a citation or sourcing, and we may feature it!

Edited by Noah Bierman and Rishika Dugyala

A message from McKinsey & Company:

For nearly 100 years, McKinsey & Company has been a trusted advisor to organizations during transitions. In the first 100 days, leaders need to quickly solidify their missions, build the right team, and strengthen their resilience in an ever-evolving world. McKinsey's decades of experience provide valuable insights, trainings and playbooks for a successful transition. Learn more about our work.