Now. On a friday night good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york. Day 190 of the Trump Administration. And Reince Priebus of kenosha, wisconsin will soon be a private citizen again. And tonight he is making plan foss as they say, spend more time with his family. His replacement is homemade secretary john kelly, a retired fourstar u. S. Marine general. He starts on monday and in Trump White House terms that is ages from now. Priebus granted his exit interview. The first one to cnn notable because the president never miss as chance to call them fake. And priebus said his departure symbolized the president pressing the reset button, what trump criticized Hillary Clinton for doing with russia. Priebus was graceful in departing. He implied his departure was a topic of conversation with the president as he praised trump for unmatched political indistinct. Ive been obviously talking to the president for a few days about this. And ultimately i formally resigned yesterday. Its something i always talked to the president about. Ive always said to him and he always agreed with me, any time either one of us think that we need to to make a change or move in a different direction, lets just talk about it and get it done. Im always going to be a trump fan. Im on team trump. He has the best political instincts hang on a second. Yeah. He knows intuitively when things need to change. Ive seen it now for a year and a half on the wild ride with the president that i loved being a part of. But he intuitively determined that it was time to do something differently. And i think he is right. We talk all the time about this subject. And any time any time we want to go a different direction either one of us we talk about it. That is how Reince Priebus describes his exit. Here is how the Washington Post describes it. Quote his final departure was a humilitying coda for what had been a largely demean tenure durlg which priebus endured emasculation from rival advisers and even at times the president himself. The post story recounts one vinnette we the president asked priebus to kill a fly bothering trump in the oval office. Priebus says he officially told President Trump yesterday he would resign but still accompanied the president on air force one to long island wrp trump spoke to Law Enforcement officers. During that speech before we knew secretary kelly would take over for priebus trump seemed to give a bit of a hint. I want to congratulate john kelly who has done an incredible job of secretary of Homeland Security. One of our real stars. Truly one of our stars. John kelly is one of our great stars. You know the border is down 78 . The story broke while air force 1 on on route to d. C. From new york on a rain swept tar mack the president at andrews spoke briefly with roirs. Reince is a good man. John kelly will do a fantastic job. General kelly has been a star done an incredible job thus far respected by everybody. A great, Great American. But Reince Priebus a good man. Thank you very much. At this point let us bring in tonights starting panel for a friday night nbc News White House correspondent Kristin Welker who was busy to do. Washington post White House Bureau chief dit o senior kwhous reporter for politico. Josh gerritsen. Dit o another business man jonathan le mere White House Reporter for the associated press. Great to have you all. Josh ill begin with you because of your placements today. You were a Pool Reporter for the arrival at the place i will always call Andrews Air Force base ofs air force one. It was the smaller version of the plane today, a 757. And you reported what you saw contemporaneously it speaks to the ongoing diminishment of Reince Priebus. But tell us what you saw when they landed. They were quite delayed in landing, about an extra half hour in the air coming down from new york. I think they were circling for some time due to bad weather. When they finally did land and pull up at the parking place we saw a bunch of staffers come out of the back of the plane. And then we saw the senior staffers Reince Priebus and then Steven Miller and dan skafen o the social media director there at the white house all go and get into a vehicle together. This was just at the time that the tweet was coming out from the president that john kelly would be the new chief of staff. And then just moments after loading up in that car, the aides miller and scavino stepped out and got back in the motorcade and that was it for Reince Priebus. He headed off in his own car under some sort of security protection. But he was basically dropped or tufrpd out of the motorcade at andrews on his own. Unbelievable. All being described by you. We were reading it here in the newsroom. Just to emphasize he presumably asked for the car maybe to make a phone calling. The other two aides get out then the car gets out of the sequence. The line of the departing motorcade and pulse off separately. Yeah, thats essentially what happened. I dont know if he just didnt want to be there while trump was making the statement about the change of staff or he was just eager to head off and do business. Priebus did eventually end up at the white house later on in the afternoon. So phil rucker with time and space condensed as they are, compressed as they are, all of our print colleagues at the white house are writing the look back piece about the Reince Priebus era, all six months of it. And i know you contend he was something less than a chief of staff in full always. I you know, i think thats exactly right. Look this is an establishment republican who became close to donald trump over the course of the campaign. Tried to help integrity the party and the trump world. Tried to do that here in washington to help trump govern help him pass his agenda on kpal. But he was beset time and again by the chaos and disorder that has really defined all of trumps enterprises including this white house. And its remarkable, brian, that Reince Priebus he was so belittled and so demeaned by his dleegs throughout the six months wells by the president himself he showed up to work still but the back biting was just vicious and intense. You know today i talked to a senior white house official who said the past week the president was using the word weak to describe priebus. He would just say weak, weak, weak he cant get the job done. Of course its all come a end. Kristin on monday as one political type put it tonight there may be an actual printed schedule for the functioning of the west wing yet the president will still be donald trump. How much change do you expect . Well i think thats the critical question. And i would draw your attention to one point, brian. I had a conversation tonight with a source who said, look, Anthony Scaramucci is still going to be reporting to the president. He is still going to have oval office privileges. As far as we know at this point and what that means is that the chief of staff still doesnt have that emboldened status of having most of the top officials report to him. Will that change . Will john kelly push for that in . Thats a critical question and i think that could determine whether this ship is righted. I have to tell you it was very tense today at the white house. We had a sense that something may be brewing. As fifl points out the president for several day ifs not several weeks and months has questioned Reince Priebuss leadership his ability to be forceful on a whole host of issues and for context, remember he he put priebus in charge of health care. He was growing increasingly frustrated he wasnt seeing more action, more success on that front. And then its our understanding that last nights vote was the death knell for priebus, that he just couldnt sustain that final loss. Boy it doesnt get more dramatic than that. And finally jonathan who pays a heavy price for being with us here in new york i got to you last. We have so many things to consider. We have he former marine four star general doesnt scare easily. We have this secretary of Homeland Security riveting for a new job at the white house where he can see the darkness on the edge of town. He can see what just happened to the last occupant and what has happened to other folks in the president s orbit. In this case does no political experience that a good thing. Maybe. Perhaps coming in he has a sense of what has gone wrong but maybe he will try something new to try to fix it. Secretary chief rpds chief of staff priebus from the get go seemed overwhelmed by the post overwhelmed by donald trump who never quite foregave him for not initially getting onboard the trump train last year and for questioning him in the aftermath of the access Hollywood Tape the president would bring it up he liked to tease priebus belittle priebus at tile others in the white house sometimes joined in. The lack of a successful agenda. He was supposed to be with his establishment republican contacts in charge of health care as i mentioned that has gone down in a humbling defeat. He has been unable to keep the trains you think running on time. This a white house with never having a cothe heernt message from week to week because they are derailed by the president s whims and tweets thp this week started with him going after his own attorney general one of his most faithful and loyal supporters. At the end of the week a week the white house dubbed american heroes week we have the depart urt of the shortest ten yurd kwhoif in history. We want to tell the viewers at the enof the bruft well will have a look back at where weve been since monday and its a head spinner. So jash because were talking about washington and because were talking about a Cabinet Department where the number two will be in charge until a number one can bement fomt l nominated and not just any Cabinet Department, the folks who keep us safe. What are you hearing about a new secretary for the department of Homeland Security . Well, were hearing that you know one of the rumors is that is out there right now is that there might be some effort to try to shift attorney general Jeff Sessions over this job because he is somebody who had always been thought of as more of an immigration enforcer anyway. I dont know thats viable in the senate given some of the rules laid down up there or the statements raid down by senators in the last couple days saying theyre not interested in having more confirmation hearings for attorney general. That would throw democrats into a pan ac that it was a package deal that would lead to the out offer of special counsel of bob mueller. And just kinning chaos at the justice department. For the time being we are looking for acting chief over there until things settle down. Kristin welker as we take a moment and digest just the idea of the attorney general going across town to Homeland Security and the dominos that sets off, about mr. Scaramucci. Umhum. It is roundly contended by all the former Communications Chiefs we have spoken to that the kind of barnyard language he used that would make a longshoremen plush would mean instant dismissal from any other white house. It appears at the close of busy won. He is a direct report to the president going around any other function in the white house and he is still there. Not only is he still there, brian. But there is a sense behind the scenes that the president is okay with what happened. That perhaps he was in some whiches expressing part of what the president feels at least as it trelts to Reince Priebus. Steve bannons job it seems at this point is still safe. But i have to tell you what happened has further divided an already very fractured west wing. And what i mean by that is that you have some people behind the scenes who are brushing off what happened. Some people laughing about what happened. But other people who are deeply upset and bothered fwi who say frankly someone who use that is type of language, someone who attacks his fellow colleagues shouldnt be allowed to continue to serve in the west wing at the pleasure of the president. And so i think its created more discord. Now, can general kelly come in and change that . Can he smooth over some of the very rough edges that exist right now . Thats going to be a real challenge i think because there is a lot of concern right now, a lot of paranoia among staffers that they could be the next to go. Of course its worth noting brian that Reince Priebus was one of Donald Trumps remaining lengths to the party. You have sean spicer who is out. You have katy walsh who was the first rnc connected high level staffer to leave. Another lower Level Communications staffer who left last week. You have four departures all connected to the rnc. The president s connection to that branch of the Republican Party growing thinner by the day. Mr. Rucker one question was answered tonight. That is whats the president going to do about the russia sanctions . They floated out the idea that he was going to not sign on to them even though these passed through the house and senate with margins you dont see anymore. Ert thats right and the answer is the president will sign that legislation. We got word from the white house through Sarah Sanders about an hour ago. And then if the Congress Really forced the president s hand because this was a veto proof majority if you will. Even if the president were to do a veto of this bill it would really just be a symbolic gesture because the congress would of course override it. Jonathan le mere we dont deal in absolutes but how close to the worse week ever did we just witness in the administration. That is a tough competition. We need a calendar and white beard. This is the a week seen him go after at attorney general. Seen the Health Care Collapse in a humbling defeat. Seen a lot of republicans suddenly act like theyre not afraid of the president anymore. Theyre not going to act on his behalf for loyalty or out of fear. And now we have scaramucci coming in clearly shaking things up. He is the president s id if you will. He seems not to have just survived the controversy but asandant in the white house but that could change if kelly comes in monday and attempts to right the ship. But at the end of the day this is still the president. It all emen 80s from donald trump. There are only going to be significant changes in this white house if he is willing to make them. And until he does and this is of course the russia cloud still hangs over all of this there may be other competitors for worse week ever. After a long day for the good folks bringing us the first draft of history our thanks to panel of journalists Kristin Welker, Phillip Rucker and josh gerritsen. Thanks for being here late on friday night. How is the ousting of priebus sit wg those inside the gop . Well have one veteran strategist we we continue. Juse who own them, every business is different. But every one of those businesses will need legal help as they age and grow. 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Because tripadvisor searches over 200 booking sites so you save up to 30 on the hotel you want. Lock it in. Tripadvisor. On behalf of the entire senior staff around you mr. President we thank you for the opportunity and the blessing that youve given us to serve your agenda and the american people. And were continuing to work very hard every day to accomplish those goals. It was later dubbed the deer leader meeting. That was Reince Priebus at the president s first full Cabinet Meeting just over a month ago. Thanking President Trump as they all did in order for the in his part the opportunity and the blessing to work for the administration. Joining us by telephone tonight to react to todays news, our friend gop veteran msnbc political analyst steve schmidt. Happens to be strategist to john mccains president ial campaign. Weve been thinking of you as the news spoold out what kind of shape is the presidency in tonight. Well its in very bad shape. And listening to Reince Priebus there on the audio, what it shows, brian, is that compellines and sycophancy is not necessarily recipe for security in the Trump Administration. We have an administration that has the lowest approvals for any presidency in the modern history of polling.