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Reince Priebus Out, John Kelly In As White House Chief Of Staff

WASHINGTON (CBS/CNN)--President Donald Trump has selected Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly as his new White House chief of staff, replacing Reince Priebus.

Trump made the announcement in a series of tweets Friday afternoon.

Who Is John Kelly, Trump's New Chief Of Staff?

"I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff. He is a Great American and Great Leader." Trump tweeted. "John has also done a spectacular job at Homeland Security. He has been a true star of my Administration."

Trump also thanked Priebus for serving in his administration.

"I would like to thank Reince Priebus for his service and dedication to his country. We accomplished a lot together and I am proud of him!"

Before getting into his motorcade at Joint Base Andrews Friday afternoon Trump indicated he was optimistic about the staffing change.

"Reince is a good man. John Kelly will do a fantastic job. General Kelly has been a star, done an incredible job thus far, respected by everybody. A great, great American. Reince Priebus, a good man," said the president.

During an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat on the intelligence committee, said the new appointment will be received well by both sides of the aisle.

"He's held in high regard by both sides of the aisle, Democrats and Republicans. I was in the armed services for six years and he came to force many times and we just truly enjoyed having him. He was always forthright, straight talking, told us exactly what was going on, what to expect, and basically what he thought needed to be done. So it's gonna be received well," said Sen. Manchin.

According to CNN's Mark Preston, Priebus offered his resignation on Thursday.

"What I've just heard from a source very close to Reince Priebus is that in fact he offered his resignation privately to the president yesterday," said Preston.

The move comes a week after White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer resigned when Anthony Scaramucci was named the new White House communications director.

There's been speculation that Priebus would soon be ousted from an administration where he has consistently drawn heavy criticism for failing to stem the flow of leaks and struggled to impose a sense of order in a chaotic White House beset by controversies.

Priebus, who was brought on by the outsider President in large part because of his Washington relationships, also wound up carrying a hefty share of the blame for the White House's legislative stumbles.

The former Republican National Committee chairman faced a difficult task from the outset as he attempted to wrangle a hodgepodge of rival staff factions divided by ideology and allegiance, his influence supplanted by several other top advisers -- including the President's own kin -- who reported directly to Trump and not to the chief of staff.

Priebus' appointment was announced alongside Steve Bannon's, the former Breitbart editor in chief who was appointed chief strategist. The President's son-in-law Jared Kushner was named senior adviser and soon thereafter his wife -- the President's eldest daughter -- Ivanka Trump was as well.

But it was the appointment of Anthony Scaramucci to communications director last Friday that set off Priebus' final unraveling. Within days of his appointment, Scaramucci, who was added to the roster of top aides who circumvent the chief of staff and report directly to the President, took to the airwaves and suggested Priebus was responsible for leaks coming out of the White House. He leveled those charges on CNN moments after speaking with Trump.

Priebus had worked against Scaramucci joining the administration when the New York hedge fund manager was first considered for an administration post and while the two attempted to put on a show of unity in Scaramucci's first days at the White House, it quickly became clear the two men would continue to be at odds with each other.

Priebus, a Wisconsin native, joined the administration as chief of staff after a nearly six-year tenure as chairman of the RNC, the final months of which he spent in a dual role as a top adviser to Trump's campaign.

Priebus was tapped for the post at the urging of top congressional Republicans -- including House Speaker Paul Ryan, a fellow Wisconsinite -- who advised Trump that he needed a Washington insider to help him shepherd his legislative agenda. That left Priebus with the blame for many of the administration's legislative stumbles, including during the arduous attempts at passing a bill to repeal and replace Obamacare -- which Priebus had advised Trump to make his first legislative priority, promising him swift victory.

The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2017 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.

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