Yet another person has been fired by Donald Trump late on Friday night, the infamous time for what is known as the ‘Friday night dump’, when administrations do things that they do not want much attention paid to. This time it was his chief of staff Mick Mulvaney who was fired. Mulvaney is a truly awful person, a liar and someone whose ambition was to stick it poor people and help the rich, such as his strenuous efforts to gut the work of the Consumer Financial Protections Bureau. You would think that this would make him a soul mate of Trump but even being a groveling toady is never enough to please someone as self-centered as Trump.

Some see the ouster as a continuation of Trump ridding his administration of anyone who was against him during the impeachment process, or in Mulvaney’s case, who did not help matters.

Mulvaney’s role in Trump’s administration was marginalized after his now-infamous “get over it” October press conference where he confessed that the president did indeed attempt to engage in a quid pro quo with the Ukraine president in order to dig up dirt on Joe Biden.

Trump seeing a need for a major shake-up in the upper echelon of administration while dealing with the coronavirus crisis is telling. No matter the circumstances, stability seems to never be a consideration when Trump has his mind made up vanish someone.

As usual, Trump announced the firing via a tweet. Mulvaney has been appointed U.S. special envoy for Northern Ireland, maybe because he has antecedents from that area. (I am just guessing, based on his name Mick). While both Trump and Mulvaney have fulsomely praised each other, this is the equivalent of being sent to Siberia. I do not mean that as a slight to that part of the UK because every person I know who has been to any part of Ireland raves about the beauty of the country. But for Washington insiders, being so far from the action will be seen as a serious demotion.

Maybe Mulvaney can make his mark by screwing up the delicate Brexit negotiations currently underway between the UK and the EU. If he can do that and make the UK more dependent on getting a deal from the US and thus more willing to give concessions, then maybe he can worm his way back into the good graces of the political establishment.