Trump Promotes Staff Secretary Will Scharf as White House Counsel

President Donald Trump is reshuffling his top aides with only weeks remaining before midterm elections could bring a drastic shift in power across Washington, DC. He moved Will Scharf from the role of staff secretary to become the new White House counsel. This change replaces David Warrington, who will likely step out of government and head for the private sector.

Trump shared this news on social media last Saturday. He described Scharf as a man he knows very well and praised him for being tough, strong, and smart. The President noted that Scharf has done excellent work handling his own legal battles, including the Supreme Court fight brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith over charges of election interference.

Scharf was tasked with running legal memos, documents, and statements that demand the President's immediate focus. Trump clearly favors Scharf, whose calm manner fits a specific vision for a leader in the Oval Office. The President even asked him to stand on camera during public signings to announce new executive orders. Now, this new role places Scharf right between the President and any rising legal trouble, especially if Democrats win control of the House and launch investigations.

The 40-year-old man was recently ranked near the top of a power list by Daily Mail. He also got appointed to the National Capital Planning Commission to help build a legal case for speeding up renovations at the White House. Earlier this year, Scharf worried about suspending habeas rights for immigrants without papers and wrote a memo warning that such an action would face heavy legal scrutiny.

There was a moment in September when Scharf joked on a recording that their brand is crisis. This referred to a comedy film starring Sandra Bullock about political campaign strategists. Before returning for this second term, he worked as part of Trump's personal legal team and helped lead the effort against charges from Special Counsel Jack Smith.

He is also part of what people call the Missouri Mafia. This is an unofficial name for conservative lawyers from that state who now work in Washington, DC. The group includes Senators Josh Hawley and Eric Schmidt, Solicitor General John Sauer, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jesus Osete, and FBI Deputy Director Andrew Bailey. Scharf previously worked as an assistant US attorney in Missouri before trying to become attorney general there without success in 2024.