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Cliff Sims isthe latest ex-stafferin the Trump White Houseto speak out about his time there.
He describes a chaotic environment, with no obvious leadership except for those in Trump’s inner circle. DaughterIvanka Trumpand her husband, Jared Kushner, were among the privileged few, Sims writes.
And while the first daughter has gathered many detractors in the years since she waded from business into politics as her father’s senior adviser, first on his campaign and then in the White House, Sims isn’t one of them.
Ivanka “laughed freely and had a breezy air of confidence about her,” he writes. “She could be assertive at times, but never rude. And if anyone could have gotten away with being rude, it would have been her.”
Ina Tuesday morning tweet, the president derided Sims as “a low level staffer that I hardly knew” who “wrote yet another boring book based on made up stories and fiction.”
Accordingto theNew York Times, Sims left the administration last year “after clashing with” with John Kelly, then the chief of staff. White House spokespeople did not respond to a request from PEOPLE for specific comment on Sims’ account.
According toTeam of Vipers, Ivanka led a group of aides determined to convince her father not to pull out of the Paris Climate Agreement.They failed— a high-profile example of what Ivanka critics called a persistent inability to influence the president’s positions. They have accused her, essentially, of hypocrisy — nominally distancing herself from some of her father’s most unpopular policies but continuing to work in his White House.
“He knows exactly where I stand on any issue,” shetold ABC Newsin November. “I’ll always tell you what I’m for, but it is not my place as somebody working within a White House to tell you what I’m against. The only person who knows that is one person, and he knows it.”
Still, Ivanka continues to hold sway over her father, according to Sims. She has claimed victories as well, includingbacking a bipartisan bill this monthsupporting female-fronted businesses around the world.
Rick Friedman/rickfriedman.com/Corbis/Getty
From left: Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.Alex Wong/Getty
“Ivanka was and is a valuable asset to the President for one simple reason: he trusts her,” Sims writes. “He wasn’t acquiescing to her every wish, especially on policy issues. Quite the opposite, in fact. But at the very least she eased his moods and made him happy. And for a mercurial leader like Trump, that’s not nothing. No one wants the alternative.”
Sims adds, “In my experience Ivanka also happened to be one of the most persuasive surrogates the President had, both in terms of selling his agenda to the public and in twisting the arms of wavering members of Congress. On tax reform, both of those talents proved valuable.”
Ivanka’s White House role has long drawn scrutiny. According to some accounts, other aides have complained about the unusually secure position she and her husband hold in a turbulent West Wing.
“He is my father, and he’s my boss,” Ivanka told ABC News. “And one of the reasons that I have such a good relationship with him in both a personal and professional capacity is because I’m incredibly candid with him.”
According to journalist Bob Woodward’s bookFear: Trump in the White House,then-senior White House adviserSteve Bannonpurportedly exploded at her during an intense screaming match.
“You’re a goddamn staffer!”Bannon yelledat Ivanka, Woodward reported. According to his book, the outburst came as Bannon was informing Ivanka that in order to talk to the president she had to go through then-Chief of Staff Reince Priebus like any other staffer.
“You walk around this place and act like you’re in charge, and you’re not,” Bannon reportedly said. “You’re on staff!”
“I’m not a staffer! I’ll never be a staffer,” Ivanka fired back, according toFear. “I’m the first daughter.”
President Donald Trump (left) and former White House aide Cliff Sims.Cliff Sims/Twitter
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Woodward reported that is not her only ambition: Ivanka also aspires to become thefirst woman president.
While Sims doesn’t address this claim inTeam of Vipers, he does reflect on the collective cost of being in the Trump White House. His conclusion is surprisingly damning, considering that he still supports the administration.
“The inner circle of Trump World was not always a pretty picture,” he writes. “Too often it was a portrait of venality, stubbornness, and selfishness. We leaked. We schemed. We backstabbed. Some of us told ourselves it was all done in the service of a higher calling — to protect the President, to deliver for the people.”
“But,” Sims continues, “usually it was for ourselves. Most of us came to Washington convinced of the justice of our cause and the righteousness of our principles, certain that our moral compasses were true. But proximity to power changes that.Donald Trumpchanges that.
“The once clear lines — between right and wrong, good and evil, light and darkness — were eroded until only a faint wrinkle remained.”
source: people.com
