White House Deputy Chief of Staff James Blair will be taking a temporary leave of absence from his current job to run President Donald Trump’s political operation for the November 3 midterm elections.

Just hours after Politico reported that Blair was considering this move, and that White House chief of staff Susie Wiles confirmed it to them in a statement, President Trump confirmed it on Truth Social: 

“James Blair, my Deputy Chief of Staff, is one of the brightest political minds in the Country who has done tremendous work to prepare Republicans to DEFY LONGSTANDING HISTORY AND WIN the Midterms, just as he helped me do in 2024, BY A LANDSLIDE. James never wavered from the fight because he is a Political WARRIOR! Now, James will be taking a short leave of absence to lead the charge from the outside against the Radical Left, Country Destroying Democrats. He will do a fantastic job, and then, after the Election, return again to the White House, so we can finish the job and, KEEP AMERICA GREAT! President DONALD J. TRUMP”

Wiles had told Politico that “James is a top lieutenant of the President’s and has been invaluable to me for the better part of a decade. That is the frame from which we are considering our options,” adding, “Consideration of the best way to deploy a most valuable political asset for success in the midterms is a common sense and obvious thing to do.”