“Mulvaney is kind of a lone wolf and not coordinating with people like the counsel’s office,” said one former senior administration official. “This just reinforces what some of us already know: Some people play the inside game. Some people play the outside game. He is playing both poorly right now. Once impeachment is over, my guess is that he is not long for this world” inside the White House.

Adding to the speculation that Mulvaney is no longer within Trump’s inner circle and ultimately replaceable as chief of staff has been the recent, constant presence of Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) at the White House. Meadows has been a ubiquitous figure in the West Wing ever since House Democrats launched their inquiry in September, and Trump sees him as a loyal ally who provided useful advice early on, when Mulvaney and other senior administration officials were reluctant to take charge or establish a coherent defense strategy.

One White House official described Meadows as the internal “sherpa” for impeachment, likening the conservative congressman, who is especially close with the president, to aides who spent long hours guiding Trump’s Supreme Court nominees through the grueling Senate confirmation process.

Beyond participating in White House meetings on impeachment, Meadows has stayed in contact with Trump by phone. They speak daily, sometimes multiple times. He has also accompanied the president to a handful of events over the past week, including the Ultimate Fighting Championship at Madison Square Garden and a Kentucky campaign rally on the eve of the state’s gubernatorial election.

Two sources familiar with Meadows’ thinking said he has considered leaving his perch in the House Freedom Caucus to become chief of staff or to pursue other opportunities in the administration but wouldn’t make a play for the top White House job unless Mulvaney or Trump approached him first.

Rep. Mark Meadows has been a ubiquitous figure in the West Wing ever since House Democrats launched their inquiry in September. | Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Meadows and Mulvaney worked closely together as members of the Freedom Caucus until the former South Carolina congressman left to lead the Office of Management and Budget shortly after Trump’s inauguration.

“He isn’t going to be speaker because we’re not going to win the House back, so there could eventually be an opening if Trump wins reelection or Mulvaney gets canned,” said a second person close to the president, who added that Trump “will want to shake things up” if he succeeds in his bid for a second term.

But Meadows himself has recently downplayed his interest in a potential White House role, including by shifting his focus back to Capitol Hill, where the impeachment inquiry will go public for the first time on Wednesday. Meadows told the Washington Examiner over the weekend that Trump “is not feeling me out for chief of staff,” and is eager to step aside and let former Treasury spokesman Tony Sayegh and former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi help the White House navigate the uncertain political terrain as temporary advisers to the president, according to one of the sources familiar with Meadows’ thinking.

“Now that Democrats have decided to go public with this charade, Mark is in a better position to defend President Trump from Capitol Hill and let the newly assembled White House team handle impeachment from that end of Pennsylvania Avenue,” said a former Trump aide.