When news broke Friday afternoon that Steve Bannon was ousted from the White House (perhaps by his own volition, perhaps not), the internet was quick to react to the long-awaited firing. Bannon’s leaving the White House is the latest in a string of firings and resignings of high-profile members of the president’s inner circle. One picture of that inner circle, taken in January, quickly went viral after the news went public, and for an amazing reason: Of the six men in the photo, only two — Trump and Vice President Mike Pence — are left in the White House.
Bannon, who until today was Trump’s chief strategist, is seen by many as the “architect” of the alt-right, and came under particular pressure in the wake of the white supremacist marches in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend. Bannon may be the most recent person ousted from the tumultuous administration, but he has plenty of people whose lead he can follow.
According to Buzzfeed, the photo shows Donald Trump on a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin (you know, that one). He’s joined by Pence, former White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus, Chief Strategist Bannon, Press Secretary Sean Spicer, and National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. All of these men, with the exception of Mike “Daddy” Pence, have since ceased working for the White House.
The photo is a keen reminder of the absolute chaos that the Trump White House has become known for. It's telling that even though two-thirds of the men in this photo have left the White House since January, these were not the only high-profile departures to take place during that time. Former Press Secretary Sean Spicer's departure was triggered by Trump's appointment of Anthony Scaramucci as communications director — a post in which Scaramucci lasted, famously, only 10 days. Bustle compiled a full list, which you can read here.
Michael Flynn resigned as Trump's national security adviser in February over his alleged connections to Russia. Reince Preibus was fired as chief of staff at the end of July, and was replaced by John Kelly, who has clearly been busy AF.
Even though Trump has yet to fill out many of the available roles in his administration, there are a number of key players still in the game, as it were. Want to chart for yourself who gets voted off the island? Bustle created this handy bracket that you can fill out as Trump's White House thins out, one by one. Who will be next? America can't wait to find out.
