Trump tumult: Campaign manager fired

Donald Trump fired his hard-charging campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, on Monday in a dramatic shake-up created to calm panicked Republican leaders and reverse one of the most tumultuous stretches of Trump’s unconventional White House bid.

NY magazine reported Lewandowski’s ouster came after a Monday morning meeting with Trump and his three oldest children, Ivanka, Eric, and Donald Jr., where Trump’s adult kids were the driving force behind the top aide’s removal. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but, in a brief statement read on CNN, Lewandowski said, “I stand by the fact that Mr. Trump is a great candidate and is better than Hillary Clinton ever will be”.

Lewandowski was sacked during a meeting Monday morning at Trump Tower with the candidate and campaign leadership.

That raised questions about whether Lewandowski would continue in his role leading New Hampshire’s 23 delegates to the convention in Cleveland. To win the general election, it’s forecast Trump will need more than 65M; his fall in the polls has raised concerns about his campaign’s success pivoting to the general election.

“Firing your campaign manager in June is never a good thing”, said veteran Republican operative Kevin Madden. Lewandowski also clashed with Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

Known for his brusque manner, Lewandowski was accused of manhandling a female reporter in Florida during the primary campaign, but the charge against him by a local sheriff was later dropped.

“Paul Manafort has been in operational control of the campaign since April 7”.

Donald Trump’s former campaign manager says he doesn’t know why he was sacked.

Lewandowski has always been a controversial figure in Trump’s campaign, but benefited from his proximity to the presumptive Republican nominee. Lewandowski’s departure could put the operation in the hands of more experienced campaigners.

Lewandowski repeatedly defended the strategy with a line that became his mantra: “Let Trump be Trump”.

He tells CNN “I don’t know the answer to that”, when asked if he knows why he was sacked.

Last week he was seen having an explosive row with Hicks on the street in Manhattan, during which she allegedly screamed: “I am done with you”.

Fundraisers have encountered turbulence between anxious donors and a campaign manager who did not seem fully onboard with the idea that Trump and the party needed to buckle down and raise the money needed to build a robust general election operation. “He has come under intense criticism from party leaders, major donors and rank- and-file Republicans for an array of issues, including his response to last weekend’s terrorist attack in Orlando that killed 49 people”, it said.

Trump’s inability — and apparent lack of interest — in toning down his rhetoric going into the general election season has deeply troubled the party. Manafort and others had been pressuring Trump to hire more staff and tone down his fiery public persona, but their early efforts were rebuffed, according to several people familiar with the exchanges.