Washington DC: President Donald Trump may be contemplating a sweeping cabinet reshuffle following the abrupt dismissal of Attorney General Pam Bondi earlier this week, amid growing resentment and irritation over the escalating war against Iran and its domestic repercussions, according to five individuals privy to White House deliberations.
The potential realignment comes at a precarious moment for the Trump administration. The war against Iran — triggered by joint US-Israel strikes killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other leaders in Tehran on February 28 — has entered the sixth week, with gasoline prices having soared, and bringing down Trump’s approval rating.
It has amplified fears among Republicans about midterm election fallout in November.
Allies noted that Trump’s prime-time national address on Wednesday underwhelmed observers and underscored the urgency for adjustments in communication or staffing.
“A shake-up to show action is not a bad thing, is it?” remarked a White House official.
Three White House officials and two other sources versed in administration inner workings spoke anonymously to Reuters about delicate personnel deliberations. No specific cabinet member was flagged as imminently doomed, but multiple officials remain vulnerable, the sources indicated.
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s director of national intelligence, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick top the list of those at risk, particularly after the recent purges of Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
A senior White House official revealed Trump’s dissatisfaction with Gabbard, saying that the President has sought opinions on possible successors for his intelligence leader.
High-profile Trump confidants are quietly advocating Lutnick’s exit, highlighting his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Documents released earlier this year confirmed Lutnick lunched with Epstein on his private Caribbean island in 2012.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle denied any impending reshuffle, affirming Trump’s “total confidence” in Gabbard and Lutnick.
“The President has assembled the most talented and impactful Cabinet ever, and they have collectively delivered historic victories on behalf of the American people, from Director Gabbard’s role in ending the Maduro narco-terror regime to Secretary Lutnick’s role securing major trade and investment deals,” Ingle stated.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence directed Reuters to a White House post on X, where communications director Steve Cheung echoed Trump’s “total confidence” in Gabbard.
Trump will have to carefully weigh further upheaval, mindful of how frequent shake‑ups during his first term fed perceptions of disarray. One official predicted a “targeted churn” in the administration rather than a “big, dramatic reset.”
Reuters/Ipsos polling pegs Trump’s job approval at 36% — a low for the term — with 60% rejecting the US-Israeli initiation of hostilities. Trump lambasts media portrayals as biased, demanding upbeat narratives without tweaking his approach.
Cabinet resilience persists despite controversies: Lutnick’s puzzling ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs last April and Gabbard’s June video decrying “political elite warmongers” before initial Iran strikes.
Still, shake-up prospects have gained ground lately, with one senior source saying Trump seeks pre-midterm action. “Let’s just say, based on what I have heard, Bondi is not the last one,” another official added.
