'Knives are out' as 'angry and insular mood' grips Trump White House: MAGA insiders

U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House, in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 27, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci

Many national security experts continue to sound the alarm about Acting National Intelligence Director Bill Pulte, warning that he in a vitally important position despite an obvious lack of intel experience. But President Donald Trump is doubling down on his support for Pulte, which, according to Politico reporters Dasha Burns and Adam Wren, reflects the "angry" climate in the Trump White House.

"The ascension of Bill Pulte is a clear sign of the recent mood inside Donald Trump's White House: angry, insular, grievance-driven and increasingly shaped by a group of loyalists with direct access to the president," Burns and Wren report in a Thursday morning column for Politico Playbook. "For days, Senate Republicans hoped the administration would find an off-ramp to the standoff, name a permanent nominee to replace Pulte as director of national intelligence, and clear the way to reauthorize FISA Section 702 before it expires on Friday."

Burns and Wren continued, "Senior GOP staffers told Playbook they felt even more confident having deployed Speaker Mike Johnson to the White House to make sure the president would act quickly to quell the uprising among Democrats and some Republicans. Instead, Trump publicly doubled down on Pulte shortly after Johnson's visit. The move stunned congressional Republicans who thought the team around Trump understood the dilemma on the Hill and were working toward a solution."

Burns and Wren describe the "insular and isolated White House" as an environment in which "knives are out."

A MAGA insider, interviewed on condition of anonymity, told Politico Playbook that Trump is "increasingly frustrated with everyone, from his own team to the Senate." And a major source of frustration for Trump, according to that source, is Senate Republicans who oppose his "anti-weaponization fund." Another is GOP lawmakers who aren't on board with using taxpayer dollars to fund a lavish White House ballroom.

The insider told Politico Playbook, "He's p––, and people are not recognizing the level of p–– that he is. He does not like being put in a box. When you put him in a box, then Trump's going to blow the box up."

According to Burns and Wren, Trump is "increasingly turning to a small group of loyalists and informal advisers who can reach him directly amid a broader understaffed and closed-off White House operation."

A senior GOP staffer, also quoted anonymously, described Trump's recent moves as "a middle finger to Congress." And a White House source said that Trump was furious when GOP candidate Randy Feenstra lost an Iowa gubernatorial primary despite an endorsement from the president.

That source told Politico, "He's really angryabout this Iowa endorsement — like really, really angry. He's really angry that his consultants and people pushed him to do that.”

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