WHAT IF EVERY CORLEONE WAS FREDO?

The issue is that many see Trump himself as the problem. "Trump is hated by everyone inside the White House," a former West Wing official told me. His shambolic management style, paranoia, and pattern of blaming staff for problems of his own making have left senior White House officials burned out and resentful, sources said. "It's total misery. People feel trapped," a former official said. "Trump always needs someone to blame," a second former official said. Sources said the leak of Trump's private schedules to Axios--which revealed how little work Trump actually does--was a signal of how disaffected his staff has become.

White House Communications Director Bill Shine has told friends he's angry that Trump has singled him out for the bad press during the government shutdown. "Bill is like, 'you're the guy who steps on the message more than anyone,'" said a Republican who's spoken with Shine recently. Economic adviser Larry Kudlow has told people he's probably got six months left. "Larry's really tired of it all," a source close to Kudlow said.

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What's driving a lot of the frustration is that Trump, now more than ever, runs the West Wing as a family business.

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