>>> WE ARE BACK WITH BREAKING NEWS FROM MY DAY JOB COVERING
THE WHITE HOUSE.
THIS IS A FASCINATING PERSONNEL
SHIFT WITH A FAMILIAR NAME TO
ANYBODY WATCHING THIS SHOW NOW.
THAT NAME IS HOPE HICKS.
THAT SHIFT IS THAT SHE IS NOW
APPARENTLY COMING BACK TO THE
WHITE HOUSE.
WHITE HOUSE. LET ME GO BACK TO NBC’S KELLY
O’DONNELL.
O’DONNELL. SHE’S JOINING ME FROM THERE.
KELLY, THIS IS NOW BEING
CONFIRMED BY A SENIOR OFFICIALS
WE TALKED TO.
>> YES.
>> YES. WE HAVE STATEMENTS FROM JARED
KUSHNER THAT HOPE HICKS, WHO YOU
REMEMBER WAS ONE OF THE
ORIGINALS IN 2016, SHE HAD COME
OUT OF THE TRUMP ORGANIZATION
AND HAD BEEN IN THE WORK WORLD
OF DONALD TRUMP AS BUSINESSMAN,
A CANDIDATE, AND THEN PRESIDENT.
SHE LEFT THE WHITE HOUSE AND WAS
ALSO A PART OF INVESTIGATIONS
AND WENT THROUGH SOME LENGTHY
DAYS ON CAPITOL HILL PROVIDING
TESTIMONY.
TESTIMONY. SHE HAD BEEN AROUND THE
PRESIDENT ONE OF THE KEY PIECES
OF INVESTIGATION.
OF INVESTIGATION. YOU RECALL THE MEETING OF DONALD
TRUMP JR. WITH A MEETING AT
TRUMP TOWER AND CRAFTING A
MESSAGE WHEN THAT MEETING HAD
FIRST BECOME PUBLIC.
SHE HAD BEEN PART OF THAT IN HER
WORK AT THE TIME AS
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR.
COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR. SHE LEFT, WENT BACK TO PRIVATE
LIFE, IS RETURNING, NOT IN THE
COMMUNICATIONS SHOP, WHICH FOR
THOSE OF US IN OUR LINE OF WORK
AREN’T SURPRISED.
AREN’T SURPRISED. SHE NEVER APPEARED ON CAMERA AND
DIDN’T SPEAK TO THE PRESS IN A
PUBLIC SENSE THE WAY
COMMUNICATION DIRECTORS
COMMUNICATION DIRECTORS TYPICALLY DO.
TYPICALLY DO. THAT IS FOLLOWED BY STEPHANIE
GRISHAM WHO IS OFTEN NOT
AVAILABLE ON CAMERA.
THIS IS A SIGN THAT LOYALTY AND
RELATIONSHIP LOYALTY AND
RELATIONSHIP MATTER TO THIS
PRESIDENT EVEN IF IT DOESN’T GO
BOTH WAYS.
BOTH WAYS. BUT HOPE HICKS IS SOMEONE THE
PRESIDENT IN MANY WAYS TREATED
LIKE FAMILY.
LIKE FAMILY. YOU MAY REMEMBER THE DAY SHE
LEFT THE WHITE HOUSE WHERE HE
BROUGHT HER OUT AND SORT OF GAVE
HER A MOMENT TO BE SEEN BY THE
CAMERAS.
CAMERAS. HE FELT GREAT PERSONAL AFFINITY
FOR HER.
FOR HER. JARED KUSHNER TALKS ABOUT HER
EXPERTISE, HER STRATEGIC
THINKING.
THINKING. STEPHANIE GRISHAM TALKS ABOUT
HER QUIET CONFIDENCE AND SUPPORT
OF THE PRESIDENT AND THAT THEY
ARE DELIGHTED TO HAVE HER
RETURN.
RETURN. WE’RE JUST DEVELOPING THESE
DETAILS BUT IT COMES AT A
CRITICAL TIME.
CRITICAL TIME. POST IMPEACHMENT AND ACQUITTAL,
AT A TIME WHEN SOME OF THE
STRATEGIC PLANNING FOR WHAT CAN
BE ACCOMPLISHED IN THIS FINAL
YEAR WHEN YOU HAVE MANY PEOPLE
WHO HAVE PEELED OFF AND RETURNED
OR MOVED OVER TO THE CAMPAIGN
SIDE, THERE HAD BEEN SOME TALK
ABOUT WOULD THERE BE A CHANGE IN
SOME OF THE LEADERSHIP WITHIN
THE WHITE HOUSE.
THERE HAD BEEN RUMBLINGS ABOUT
WHERE DOES MICK MULVANEY STAND?
HE’S STILL ACTING CHIEF OF
STAFF.
STAFF. WOULD SOMEONE LIKE MARK MEADOWS
FROM CAPITOL HILL COME OVER.
THIS NEWS BRINGS BACK INTO THE
FOLD SOMEONE TRUSTED AND
WELL-KNOWN BY THE PRESIDENT AND
SOMEONE WHO WE HAVE ALL DEALT
WITH OVER THE LAST SEVERAL
YEARS.
YEARS. HOPE HICKS TIME IN PRIVATE LIFE
WAS RELATIVELY SHORT AND NOW
SHE’S COMING BACK TO THE WHITE
HOUSE AND THE SPOTLIGHT THAT
COMES WITH THAT.
>> THAT IS FOR SURE.
>> KELLY.
>> KELLY. >> TO BE CLEAR SHE’S NOT COMING
BACK IN COMES ROLE,
COMMUNICATIONS, A BROAD ADVISORY
ROLE, WHICH IS A LITTLE
DIFFERENT THAN WHAT SHE HAD BEEN
DOING BEFORE.
DOING BEFORE. >> IN MANY WAYS WE WILL NOT SEE
HER INTERACTING WITH THE PRESS
THE WAY SHE ONCE DID.
IT SPEAKS TO THE LEVEL, ADVISING
HIM STRATEGICALLY.
HIM STRATEGICALLY. I EXPECT SHE’LL BE ONE OF THE
PEOPLE WITH FREQUENT OVAL OFFICE
PRIVILEGES THE PRESIDENT CAN
RELY ON TO MAKE DECISIONS AND
BOUNCE IDEAS OFF.
>> SURE.
>> SURE. SHE WAS BEFORE.
IF YOU’RE NEXT TO SARAH SANDERS.