Mark Meadows is now out of the running for White House Chief-of-Staff

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, is no longer under consideration to be President Donald Trump’s chief of staff.

“Congressman Mark Meadows is a great friend to President Trump and is doing an incredible job in Congress,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement on Wednesday. “The President told him we need him in Congress so he can continue the great work he is doing there.”

Meadows, a staunch Trump ally, had been a top contender for the position after Nick Ayers — the president’s first choice to replace John Kelly, who Trump said last weekend would be leaving at the end of the year — turned it down. Meadows had signaled his interest in recent days, despite early reports that he was telling confidants he didn’t want the job.

[link to www.politico.com (secure)]