Mark Meadows’ journey from ‘fat nerd’ to Trump chief of staff

Rep. Mark Meadows, once a House member bucking his party’s leadership and pushing the limits of conservatism on Capitol Hill, will join the new vanguard of the Republican Party as President Trump’s chief of staff.

Mr. Trump tapped the retiring North Carolina Republican last week to join his administration, the latest development in their unwavering alliance over the past few years.

“This nobody from nowhere has lived the American dream on the political sense, where you have influence but only because of the people,” Mr. Meadows recently told The Washington Times’ Tim Constantine. “It’s their power; it’s not mine.”

He often describes his rise in politics and in business as a journey from humble if not poor beginnings.

Mr. Meadows, 60, grew up in Florida and once described himself in an interview with The Tampa Bay Times as a “fat nerd” when he was in school.

He went on to spend nearly 30 years creating and running small businesses before he was elected to Congress in 2012.

In the 1980s, he opened a sandwich shop called Aunt D’s after moving to North Carolina.

He later sold the shop and turned to real estate, first opening a development company called Meadows Mountain Realty, which he later sold, and then Highlands Properties.

He and his wife, Debbie, have two sons and a granddaughter.

In 2014, he was one of the co-founders of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, which he headed from 2017 to 2019.

The group of tea-party-style hard-liners has a reputation for rebelling against House Republican leadership and occasionally the president.

Under Mr. Meadows, the Freedom Caucus posed a challenge to Republican leaders when the party had the majority, fracturing the party when moderate Republicans were willing to make deals on spending or immigration reform. In 2015, he was one of the leading lawmakers calling for then-House Speaker John A. Boehner’s ouster as head of the chamber.

However, with Republicans in the minority since last year, the conference has unified, particularly when it comes to defending Mr. Trump and Republican policies.

Mr. Meadows has been at the forefront of that effort, particularly during the impeachment proceedings. He was a constant presence during the 12 weeks of closed-door depositions, sitting on the sidelines during the public hearings, and was a member of the president’s defense team during the trial.

“Mark Meadows is smart, loyal, a true patriot. He’s a good man and my best friend,” Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, fellow Freedom Caucus co-founder, tweeted after Trump’s announcement. “Couldn’t have picked anyone better for the job.”

“Mark Meadows has been a strong advocate for the president [and] the America First agenda from the start. Congrats, Mark!” tweeted Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California.

In December, the four-term congressman announced he was retiring from Congress, reviving longtime speculation that he was under consideration to serve in the administration.

In that way, his elevation to a top White House post seemed as inevitable as it was unlikely.

“This president and his administration have a long list of incredible victories they’ve delivered to the country during this first term, with the best yet to come — and I look forward to helping build on that success and staying in the fight for the forgotten men and women of America,” Mr. Meadows said when accepting the job. “In particular, I want to recognize my friend Mick Mulvaney. Mick is smart, principled, and as tough a fighter you’ll find in Washington, D.C. He did a great job leading the president’s team through a tremendous period of accomplishment over the last year-plus.”

Still, serving as the president’s right-hand man is a much more fickle position than representing the consistently Republican voters of his North Carolina district.

Mr. Meadows will be Mr. Trump’s fourth chief of staff in that many years. The first, Reince Priebus, lasted only 192 days. John F. Kelly, the second chief of staff, lasted much longer but left the administration in December 2018 not on good terms.

Mick Mulvaney, a former Freedom Caucus member, is the acting chief of staff. He will become the U.S. special envoy for Northern Ireland.

Where Mr. Meadows was a reliable support for the president throughout the impeachment process, Mr. Mulvaney found himself in hot water after he linked military aid for Ukraine to investigations into the president’s political rivals — fueling Democrats’ impeachment case.

While Mr. Meadows will be a new face in the Oval Office, Democrats are not optimistic their former colleague will be able to mend the tense relationship between the Trump White House and the House of Representatives.

“The big problem at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. is President Donald John Trump. And until we change that situation, nothing is likely to change,” Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries of New York told The Washington Times.

Mr. Meadows will be starting in his position soon, though the timing is not exactly clear — the incoming chief of staff just finished a self-quarantine, which he started Monday after coming into contact with someone who was infected with the new coronavirus at the Conservative Political Action Conference last month.