Good Thursday morning. I'm Jake Sherman and welcome to your Politico Playbook Audio Briefing, sponsored by Morgan Stanley.

And I'm Anna Palmer. This morning, we're kicking things off with Trump's emptying White House. Don McGahn is out.

The Washington Post reported last night that three of McGahn's deputies have departed. And a fourth, Stefan Pasatino, will have his last day Friday. That leaves John

Eisenberg, who handles national security as the lone deputy council. Sarah Huckabee Sanders,

the marquee name in the president's White House press shop, doesn't seem far behind. And it's

widely believed that John Kelly could also head for the exits at some point,

despite saying he will remain in the post through 2020. Turnover, of course, is a natural part of

any White House. These jobs are high stress and require grueling hours. What's different here is that

unlike in previous administration, there is not an army of political

operatives and top aides vying to replace the troops. Scores of House Republicans are going to be

looking for jobs, and we've only heard of a handful that are even willing to consider an

administration job. The Trump White House has never been a sought-after gig for much of

professional Washington, and that has only become more true as the president has faced an onslaught

of investigations and scandal.

Trump's proclivity for throwing top aides under the bus and publicly humiliating folks like Attorney General Jeff Sessions has not helped his recruitment case.

All the stabilizing forces are walking away, just as President Donald Trump needs them most.

Split government in Washington is hard.

Just ask Barack Obama, John Boehner, Harry Reid, and Mitch McConnell.

The danger for Trump?

These absences create an opening for the fiery wing of Trump world,

Gore Lee Lindowski, Katrina Pearson, and others to have influence in 2019

when the president might be

...