Shakeup at Top of Trump Campaign
New team takes over as candidate loses ground in Republican strongholds
Donald Trump’s campaign is making its second major staff change as the Republican presidential candidate continues to struggle in key states ahead of November’s election.
Kellyanne Conway, a veteran Republican pollster who has been an adviser to the campaign, will take over as campaign manager.
Stephen Bannon, the executive chairman of Breitbart News who is a former banker for Goldman Sachs, will serve as campaign chief executive, a new position.
While Trump has received criticism from many conservative websites, Breitbart News has been consistently supportive Trump and has even defended former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, who was accused of assaulting Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields, who has since resigned from the organization.
[Team Trump Adds Another Ex-Lobbyist]
Trump told The Wall Street Journal that he was making the changes because “I want to win. That’s why I’m bringing on fantastic people who know how to win and love to win.”
Paul Manafort, the campaign’s chairman, will remain in that position, but multiple media reports say his role will be diminished after friction developed between him and Trump over the direction of the campaign. Manafort himself has been a distraction to the campaign over questions about his previous business dealings in Ukraine.
[A Dangerous Gig: Working for Paul Manafort]
The Associated Press reported on Wednesday that Manafort helped a pro-Russia group in Ukraine secretly route more than $2 million in payments to two Washington lobbying firms to try to influence U.S. policy.
The shakeup comes as polls show Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton pulling away in several battleground states and even closing the gap in a few traditionally red states.