Reince Priebus has a new job.
President Trump’s first chief of staff has been selected to join the Navy as a reserve officer after his application was helped by a recommendation letter from Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, according to a memo obtained by the Washington Post.
The 46-year-old former chairman of the Republican National Committee, who served in Trump’s white house for about six months at the beginning of his term, said he was encouraged to enlist after he met with the family of Senior Chief William Ryan Owens, a 36-year-old Navy SEAL who was killed in Yemen during a special operations raid in Yemen.
“At that moment, the gravity of every action we take in the West Wing rushed down upon my shoulders,” Priebus wrote. “Everything suddenly became extremely real and raw. As some time passed, a few other senior aides joined me in the Cabinet Room and we discussed the consequences, harsh realities and weight of what we do every day.”
He also cited his sister, a Navy doctor, and his father, who taught at Naval Station Great Lakes in Illinois, as his inspirations.
Along with his personal statement, Priebus also turned in a recommendation letter from Mattis, who wrote that “Reince’s experience, education, and personality make him an ideal fit to be commissioned into the Navy Reserve,” according to the Post.
The maximum age to join the Navy is 42, but older applicants — like Priebus — can get a waiver to join.
Priebus was ousted in July 2017, as one of the last RNC staffers to exit the West Wing in the early days of Trump’s presidency. He was replaced by John Kelly, who recently handed in his own resignation.
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