President Donald Trump is losing Karoline Leavitt, and one columnist surmised Thursday he may soon lose far more than his press secretary.
In a pointed opinion piece for The I Paper, political editor James Ball argued that Leavitt's surprise exit laid bare how dependent an aging Trump has become on the young staffers who shield and soothe him. Leavitt was his most visible public defender, Ball wrote, and was "one of his comfort blankets, someone upon whom he has come to depend."
Trump prizes loyalty above all and showered the departing 28-year-old with praise, calling her one of his "most trusted aides" as he announced her exit on his Truth Social platform. Ball cast Leavitt as the ideal Trump spokeswoman, who was a natural on television and willing to say whatever the president wanted, even shrugging off his handling of the Epstein files.
Her departure, Ball argued, left Trump increasingly reliant on a shrinking circle that includes executive assistant Natalie Harp, who reportedly soothes him by printing out tweets from his biggest fans. The departure lands just months before a midterm election that could hand Democrats the power to crank up the heat, a "catastrophic embarrassment," for Republicans, Ball noted.
The timing, Ball said, is ominous for the president.
Leavitt's exit dealt Trump a significant loss, and the columnist suspected it won't be the last.
"Trump is approaching the twilight of his presidency, and the diminishing of his power," Ball concluded. "Leavitt's departure could be the first of many. Trump is not just becoming increasingly vulnerable. He may soon also find himself increasingly alone."
