The White House placed a top administration official on leave after an undercover sting operation revealed his deep disdain for President Donald Trump.
Benjamin Ellisten, a senior budget analyst and funding manager for the White House, told James O’Keefe’s undercover journalist that Trump is a “madman” who is “f*cking it up for everybody.” Ellisten, who has worked at the White House since 2024, has since been placed on administrative leave, a White House official told the Daily Caller.
“He has no direct access to the President or Senior Staff, and does not work on the White House campus,” the official told the Caller. “Such views expressed by the individual are not reflective of patriots who admirably serve in the Administration.”
Ellisten was caught telling O’Keefe’s reporter that Trump is a “mess,” saying they “gotta get rid of him.” (RELATED: Trump Says He’s ‘Seriously Considering’ Making Venezuela 51st State. Delcy Rodriguez Responds)
“He’s a madman,” Ellisten told the undercover journalist. “Literally. He’s invincible. Nothing can stop him, and that’s dangerous.”
Ellisten also criticized Trump’s leadership style, calling him “erratic” and “scary.”
“The way his decisions are so erratic, you would think he drinks,” Ellisten said. “He doesn’t drink. And that’s what makes it so dangerous, that someone could be of sound mind and body, totally coherent, could just be so reckless in their decision-making. That’s scary.”
Ellisten went further to criticize the president’s foreign policy, speculating that he is intentionally inflating the price of oil to enrich himself and family members who have business dealings in the region.
“The president knows that he affects how people react to the stock market,” Ellisten said. “So one of the things that looks like it’s going on, and going on a lot, is insider trading. Like, for instance, with the war going on in Iran, the price of oil is expensive.”
O’KEEFE EXPOSE: The White House Tapes https://t.co/tpK53QpWaW
— James O’Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) May 12, 2026
Maxim Lott, a special assistant on domestic policy at the White House, also revealed details about the “chaotic” inner workings of the administration.
“The decision-making processes are a little bit chaotic,” Lott told the undercover journalist.
“I think it’s just the overall tone that, like, you know, the government right now is a little bit uncontrolled,” Lott added. “It’s not gonna fix itself.”
Lott, who was previously a producer on John Stossel’s show, also said lower-level officials occasionally make policy determinations on behalf of the president.
“In theory, everything should sort of come from the president,” Lott said. “But it might come from the level below him, where they’re like, ‘I think I know the president well enough to say what he would say on this.’ It’s like, ‘Yeah, he would wanna do that, that would be popular.’ And then, at my level, at five levels below or whatever, still there’s a lot of discretion to be like, this is clearly like, what he would wanna do.”
“There’s no like, ‘Oh well, this will cost $10 million but save people $20 million.’ There’s like nothing like that, it’s just, ‘this feels like a good idea’ or ‘the base supports this,’ alright, just sign.”
When O’Keefe’s team reached out to Lott, he stood by his remarks and said he remained committed to Trump’s agenda.
“I went out with an individual I thought was a genuine person, but it goes to show how insidious politics and this city can be,” Lott said in a statement. “Nothing I said was contradictory of this Administration, and I remain fully committed to carrying out its agenda.”