A senior official in the White House has written an 'extraordinary' essay claiming staff are actively trying to thwart Donald Trump
Writing anonymously for the New York Times, they claim 'many of the senior officials in his own administration are working diligently from within to frustrate parts of his agenda and his worst inclinations
' The staffer says that Trump is unpredictable, amoral, and a danger to the health of the USA
They said that some parts of the presidency had been successful, such as tax reform, however they were 'despite – not because of – the president's leadership style, which is impetuous, adversarial, petty and ineffective
' They claim that Trump's preference is to engage with autocrats and dictators such as Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, rather than traditional allies such as leaders in Europe
For example, this meant he was unwilling to expel Russian diplomats over the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury earlier this year
His national security team insisted this must be done, despite strong objections from the president, the source claimed
They claimed that early on in the presidency there was talk of trying to remove the president by invoking the 25th Amendment, but that this was dismissed as potentially triggering a constitutional crisis
'So we will do what we can to steer the administration in the right direction until – one way or another – it's over,' they said
The essay has sent shockwaves across social media after it was published today. Tim Shipman, political editor of the Sunday Times, tweeted that it was 'one of the most extraordinary things I've ever read'
Jodi Kantor, an investigative reporter with the New York Times, tweeted: 'So basically: Times reporters now must try to unearth the identity of an author that our colleagues in Opinion have sworn to protect with anonymity? 'Or is the entire newspaper bound by the promise of anonymity? I don't think so, but this is fascinating
Not sure if there's precedent.' Former federal prosecutor and legal analyst Renato Mariotti criticised the author, saying that if they truly believed things were this bad, they should publicly say so and resign
'By acting in secret they help preserve the Administration of a man who they believe is a danger to our nation,' he claimed
It comes the day after excerpts from a tell-all book by Watergate reporter Bob Woodward were published, quoting Trump's chief of staff John Kelly saying the White House was 'Crazytown'
Mr Kelly has since refuted that he said this. Donald Trump has slammed the book as 'nasty' and untrue, saying it was 'nothing more than fabricated stories told to make the President look bad
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