THE PURGE: Priebus Out, General Kelly In As WH Chief of Staff

President Trump on Friday dismissed Reince Priebus as his chief of staff and replaced him with retired four-star Marine Corps General and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a dramatic shakeup of a White House staff riven by infighting and distrust.

Priebus has borne the brunt of the blame for the lack of progress on Trump’s legislative agenda. He has been derided for months by Trump allies and outside critics saw him as a weak chief of staff who was never able to become a gatekeeper for the president.

Trump abruptly announced the decision Friday evening on Twitter as Air Force One landed at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland as he returned from a trip to New York.

“I am pleased to inform you that I have just named General/Secretary John F Kelly as White House Chief of Staff,” he tweeted.

Speaking to reporters minutes later, Trump said Priebus was a "good man" but called his Homeland Security chief a "star."

“Reince is a good man. John Kelly will do a fantastic job. Gen. Kelly has been a star, done an incredible job thus far, respected by everybody. He's a great, great American,” the president said.

Priebus served 189 days on the job, the shortest tenure of any White House chief of staff in history. His dismissal marks the end of a tumultuous tenure in which he clashed with other top Trump advisers, most recently Anthony Scaramucci, the newly named communications director.

Priebus had initially tried to block Scaramucci from another White House job. But last week, Trump tapped the brash Wall Street financier to lead the White House press shop over strong objections from Priebus and then-White House press secretary Sean Spicer.