Mick Mulvaney was appointed White House chief of staff in an interim capacity in December to succeed John Kelly. | Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo White House Mulvaney stays mum on promotion to permanent chief of staff

Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney declined Sunday to say whether he is poised to permanently become Donald Trump’s top aide, instead remarking that the president “enjoys having me” in the West Wing.

“Are you going to lose the acting in your title? What’s the status on that?” asked host Jonathan Karl on ABC’s “This Week” — after an interview in which Mulvaney criticized the origins of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, defended the administration’s decision to support the invalidation of Obamacare in court, echoed the president’s threat to shut down the U.S.-Mexico border and praised Trump for overriding proposed cuts by his Education Department to the Special Olympics.


“Listen, we all serve at the pleasure of the president. You can call me whatever you want to,” Mulvaney said. “I enjoy going to work every single day. I think he works — enjoys having me there, and it’s been a fun couple of months.”

Mulvaney was appointed White House chief of staff in an interim capacity in December to succeed John Kelly.

The position was available because Nick Ayers, Vice President Mike Pence’s former chief of staff and the president’s reported top pick for the job, wouldn’t agree to serve in the role for two years. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also turned down the offer.

POLITICO reported earlier this month that the White House is planning to install Mulvaney on a permanent basis, according to four current and former senior administration officials.

A former South Carolina congressman and White House budget chief, Mulvaney is Trump's third chief of staff. He follows former Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, who departed the White House in July 2017, and Kelly, the former Homeland Security secretary.