More US Cabinet members face axe

– Another round of upheaval engulfed President Donald Trump’s White House on Tuesday, with the future of several senior aides in doubt just a week after US congressional elections.

Three Trump Cabinet members – Chief of Staff John Kelly, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke – could soon be gone, said sources familiar with internal discussions in the Republican administration.

Turnover among White House personnel paused during the runup to last week’s elections after senior Republicans asked Trump to refrain from firing staff, hoping to minimise perceptions of disorder.

Attorney-General Jeff Sessions was forced out by Trump last week just hours after the results came in from the November 6 elections, which handed majority control of the House of Representatives to the Democrats.

Trump’s first 22 months in office have seen frequent shakeups. A study this year by the Brookings Institution, a think tank, found Trump’s White House has had the highest turnover of senior-level staff of the past five presidents.

In an unusual move, sources said, Trump was also ready to dismiss Mira Ricardel, deputy national security advisor, at the request of his wife, Melania, after a clash between the two over the first lady’s recent trip to Africa.

Melania’s office acknowledged the acrimony.

Trump was expected to remove Nielsen, a source said. Nielsen took the job after Trump made Kelly his chief of staff. But now the president is considering getting rid of both. –