Among the bizarre factoids in Michael Bender’s new book, “Frankly, We Did Win This Election,” was the ways in which new President Donald Trump worked to circumvent all of the traditional rules and security barriers put in place.
One such rule was that then-chief of staff John Kelly listen in on all of Trump’s calls. Traditionally, calls are made through the White House system, but Trump apparently wasn’t about to do that.
“When John Kelly, a retired, four-star Marine general whom Trump had recruited into his administration, invoked his chief of staff authority to listen in on any call that was patched through to the president from the West Wing switchboard, Trump gave friends the number to Melania’s phone to circumvent this official channel,” Bender wrote. Continue reading.