White House chief of staff John Kelly doubled as President Trump’s hype man at a rally Friday.
In the middle of Trump’s speech in Alabama – in which he touted his support for Sen. Luther Strange in an upcoming GOP runoff contest – Trump’s talk of the border quickly turned to a call for Kelly, Trump’s former homeland security secretary, to join him onstage.
“And you know who I have here tonight? Gen. John Kelly, who headed up Homeland Security, and what a job he did on the borders,” Trump told the crowd. “Where is the general? Where is he? Where is he? General, come appear quick, come here. Come here. Four star. Come, come, come, come. This guy, what a great man this is.”
Trump brings John Kelly on stage during campaign rally for Luther Strange pic.twitter.com/h0PYDGbW5e
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) September 23, 2017
Cameras covering the event showed Kelly marching up to the stage as Trump added, “No games. You know the expression, there’s no games being played. Four-star marine, there are very few, four-star general.”
Cheers and applause ensued as Kelly raised his arms up into the air to help energize the crowd. Kelly didn’t say anything however, and quickly left the stage.
Kelly has been largely resistant to entering the spotlight at chief of staff, keeping a low profile in the public arena. During a rally in August in Phoenix, Ariz., Trump beckoned Kelly onto the stage in a similar manner, but he was nowhere to be found.
Trump has reportedly chaffed at Kelly’s no-nonsense operation since joining the White House, including restricting the flow of information and people that reaches Trump. However, publicly, Trump has been nothing but supportive of the retired general.
“He just wants to work. He’s done a great job. Four-star marine. That’s good,” Trump said on Friday, before diving back into the border and the wall.
