# Trump Comfortable with Power in Second Term

> Journalists say Trump is more comfortable using power in his second term.
- Title: Trump Comfortable with Power in Second Term · Fox News
- Summary: Journalists say Trump is more comfortable using power in his second term. Trump's second term shows he trusts instincts and operates with fewer internal…
- Keywords: trump, second term, white house, journalists, unfettered, power, atlantic, press, levers of power, loyalists, news, politics
- Source: Fox News — https://foxnews.com/media/trump-unfettered-comfortable-power-second-term-journalists-say
- Author: Brian Flood
- Published: 2026-09-18T00:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: trump, second term, white house, journalists, unfettered, power, atlantic, press, levers of power, loyalists, news, politics
## Journalists Discuss Trump's Second Term
Atlantic reporters Jonathan Lemire, Ashley Parker, Missy Ryan and Michael Scherer discussed what it's like to cover the White House during the magazine's annual festival in New York City.

> We're seeing someone who completed, arguably, the greatest comeback in American political history. He trusts his instincts and very few others and is sort of an unfettered version of himself
## Trump's Second Term Features Loyalists
Lemire said Trump's second administration is filled with 'true believers' and 'loyalists,' while remnants of the old Republican establishment are long gone.

> Lemire said Trump's second administration is filled with 'true believers' and 'loyalists,' while remnants of the old Republican establishment are long gone
## Trump More Comfortable with Power
Lemire said Trump is more comfortable with the job and how to use the levers of power, including the relationship with the press.

> He also is just more comfortable with the job and how he dictated change in terms of that relationship
## Chief of Staff Helps Trump
Parker said the presence of chief of staff Susie Wiles has helped, while deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller spent four years out of power plotting how to run a bigger, stronger, faster, better, more ruthless White House.

> Parker said the presence of chief of staff Susie Wiles has helped, while deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller spent four years out of power plotting how to run a bigger, stronger, faster, better, more ruthless White House
## Trump's Last Chance to Make Mark
Scherer said Trump's message at the midterm convention was 'vote for me one more time' and he's taking a nostalgic approach to things as his last chance to make his mark.

> I was in Dallas last week when he did the midterm convention. His message was, 'Vote for me one more time'
## Less Internal Conflict in Second Term
Scherer said the first Trump term had three or four camps warring with each other, but the second term has fewer conflicts and operates as a unified body under chief of staff Susie Wiles.

> The first Trump term, there were three or four camps in that same space. They were often warring with each other and stabbing each other in the back and competing for the president
## Key takeaway

Trump's second term shows he trusts instincts and operates with fewer internal conflicts than his first term.