Study: 78% of top Trump White House jobs have turned over at least once

Seventy-eight percent of the most influential jobs in President Donald Trump’s White House have turned over during his tenure, a figure higher than those for the entire first terms of the previous four administrations, a new study finds.

Moreover, 31% of those jobs have turned over at least twice, according to a study by the Brookings Institution.

Among the most recent is national security adviser. Last week Robert O’Brien, formerly the nation’s top hostage negotiator, became the fourth person to hold that position during the Trump administration.

The study looked at 65 “A Team” jobs in the executive office of the president, including chief of staff, White House counsel, communications director, press secretary and director of legislative affairs. (The comings and goings of Cabinet secretaries were tracked separately.)

Trump’s turnover of 78% during his first 32 months exceeds the turnover during the first four years of presidents Barack Obama (71%), George W. Bush (63%), Bill Clinton (74%) and George H.W. Bush (66%).

During the first term of President Ronald Reagan, 78% of jobs turned over, matching Trump’s number to this point in his tenure.

Turnover among Trump’s Cabinet has been even more striking when compared with that of his predecessors.

The Brookings study tracked the 15 Senate-confirmed Cabinet members who are in the presidential line of succession. Of those, nine have turned over during the Trump era - a higher number than during any of the past five presidencies.