Trump appoints Mick Mulvaney as acting chief of staff

President Donald Trump on Friday picked budget director Mick Mulvaney to be his next chief of staff.

Trump tweeted that Mulvaney "will be named Acting White House Chief of Staff, replacing General John Kelly, who has served our Country with distinction."

"Mick has done an outstanding job while in the Administration," Trump posted. "I look forward to working with him in this new capacity as we continue to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! John will be staying until the end of the year. He is a GREAT PATRIOT and I want to personally thank him for his service!"

Though deemed an "acting" chief of staff, Mulvaney’s term will be open-ended, according to a senior White House official speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters. The position does not require confirmation.

Mulvaney, who will be Trump’s third chief of staff, will now take on his third job in the administration; he is the head of the Office of Management and had simultaneously led the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Mulvaney replied to Trump's tweet, saying it was a "tremendous honour" to have been chosen for the role. "I look forward to working with the president and the entire team," he wrote.

A former Tea Party congressman, Mick Mulvaney was among a faction on the hard right that bullied GOP leaders into a 2013 government shutdown confrontation by insisting on lacing a must-pass spending bill with provisions designed to cripple President Barack Obama’s signature health care law.

The president's first choice had been Nick Ayers, Vice President Mike Pence's chief of staff, who bowed out after being unable to come to an agreement on how long he would serve in the post.

Trump's decision on Friday came just hours after former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who had been considered a top candidate, also withdrew his name.

Christie's announcement leaves the president's son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer as two top possibilities to replace Kelly in the long-term.