Ex-Trump staffers struggling to find 'lucrative' jobs after bailing on the administration: report

Former White House officials closely aligned with Donald Trump are seeing mixed results after they leave the administration, with the taint of having worked for the president keeping some of them from cashing in, reports The New Republic.

The constant merry-ground and chaos at the White House has provided no shortage of former administration officials who have departed after working with the volatile president -- with a few having to resort to working for the president in another capacity until the ship comes in.

According to the report, "Some of these officials have returned to old jobs in academia or the private sector, distancing themselves from the president without renouncing him in full. Others have gone all-in on the president’s agenda by either joining his re-election campaign or the constellation of super PACs surrounding it. A handful have become apostates from the MAGA faith by getting ignominiously fired or resigning on principle. And some have simply tried to cash in on the experience."

Former high-ranking Fox News executive Bill Shine recently departed his job as the latest in a long line of ex-White House communication directors, to work in a lesser high profile job in the Trump re-election campaign. Former foreign-policy adviser Sebastian Gorka and ex-ICE chief Tom Homan landed gigs as commentators on obscure conservative media outlets.

"Every administration deals with a revolving door of former officials who take up jobs in industries related to where they once worked in public service," The New Republic's Matt Ford writes. "In theory, working in a presidential administration can be a massive career boost. Veterans of the George W. Bush administration joined conservative think tanks and Fortune 500 boards. So did former Obama White House team members, whose alumni went to work for Uber, Facebook, and other controversial companies."

That is not the case for many White House officials, he adds, explaining, "Trump staffers have found less lucrative jobs by comparison. White House press secretaries, for example, typically snag well-paid communications posts or high-profile cable news gigs."

Case in point, much-derided former White House spokesperson Sean Spicer whose stock plummeted -- particularly with the president -- after he became a punchline on Saturday Night Live.

"Sean Spicer, who became a household name for his surrealistic briefings, marketed himself as a potential talk-show host and now works as a correspondent for Extra, the tabloid TV news program," the report states.

Others have found lobbying work, such as former EPA administrator Scott Pruitt who found work as a lobbyist for the coal industry only to prove -- thus far -- to be ineffective.

"He resurfaced last month as a coal lobbyist in Indiana, which is considering measures that would phase out one of the dirtiest energy sources statewide. Despite lobbying from Pruitt, the state chamber of commerce recently declined to endorse a bill aimed at saving the industry," the report notes.

You can read more here.