Nick Geale, the top aide to Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, is leaving the Trump administration after a clash with White House officials who regarded him as personally difficult and an impediment to President Trump’s deregulatory agenda, according to sources with direct knowledge.
Behind the scenes: Senior White House officials — especially within the Domestic Policy Council — have made it clear to Acosta that they’re frustrated that, in their view, the Labor Department hasn’t been moving quickly or aggressively enough on deregulation. And some have pointed to Geale as the problem. The White House also separately lodged a complaint about Geale.
A source who is close to the president and has direct knowledge of the situation told me: “The pace of change has not been sufficient. [Acosta] tends to be fairly fearful of taking hardline positions. He tends to be solicitous of the unions, often making the argument that that’s what the president wants.”
View the complete May 14 article by Jonathan Swan on the Axios website here.