White House press secretary Sean Spicer
Sean Michael SpicerGOP lawmakers are showing up more frequently on Newsmax Making America dull again RealClearPolitics editor corrects Giuliani on Pennsylvania claim: 'This is false' MORE said in an interview that aired on Thursday that people working in President Trump
Donald TrumpEx-Trump lawyer Cohen to pen forward for impeachment book Murkowski says it would be 'appropriate' to bar Trump from holding office again Man known as 'QAnon Shaman' asks Trump for pardon after storming Capitol MORE's White House are "burnt out," identifying it as a reason for high turnover in the administration.
"There are people who just are burnt out. There is a pace that this White House goes at that probably far exceeds any other White House in history," Spicer, who left the White House last year, told Hill.TV's Buck Sexton on "Rising."
Spicer also attributed the high turnover rate to a White House staff that did not all come from Washington, adding that working there was not a good fit for some.
"It's nontraditional. You had a president who wasn't a politician, who wasn't from Washington, wasn't in government, so he didn't have a group to call upon," the former press secretary said.
"So, he calls upon supporters and friends. It wasn't a big and robust campaign that we didn't pull people in from, so there's a little bit of people trying to feel each other out on whether it was the right fit or not," he continued.
The White House has seen the departure of various high-profile officials, including Spicer himself, former communications director Anthony Scaramucci
Anthony ScaramucciKelly says Trump can't admit to making mistakes: 'His manhood is at issue here' C-SPAN's Steve Scully completes his three month suspension CNN's Smerconish lauds Trump on ,000 relief checks: 'Most effective thing he's done' post election MORE, as well as former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster.
Anthony ScaramucciKelly says Trump can't admit to making mistakes: 'His manhood is at issue here' C-SPAN's Steve Scully completes his three month suspension CNN's Smerconish lauds Trump on ,000 relief checks: 'Most effective thing he's done' post election MORE, as well as former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster. The White House has also seen high-turnover among lesser-known employees.
The Associated Press reported in July that 141 staffers who worked in the White House as of June 30, 2017, have stepped down from their posts, and 138 employees have been hired since then.
Former White House counsel Don McGahn is the most recent high-profile departure.
Trump announced last month McGahn would be leaving his position in the fall and has since started the process of looking for his replacement.
"Don's probably been going at it at a million miles per hour for three plus years," Spicer said. "In any other White House they would be talking about that fact that he's been here two years, this is the average tenure of a White House counsel. Senior staff at the White House, in any White House, burns out at 18 to 24 months."
— Julia Manchester
