'He has stayed out of a lot of people’s way,' said one senior administration official. 'No one is saying he is killing it but staying out of people’s way has helped.'

The pitfalls of a plan for Trump to shift federal dollars without an emergency declaration are coming into clearer view.

"He is willing to do whatever it takes to secure the border. He does take this very seriously. This is a serious humanitarian and security crisis."

A spokeswoman for Mulvaney dismissed the remarks as “old news” and said he changed his mind about Trump after they met.

"I care much more about what we do than what we are called"

The president tapped Mick Mulvaney as his acting chief of staff after other possible choices removed themselves from consideration.

Mulvaney will not resign as director of the Office of Management and Budget while he is acting White House chief of staff

Mulvaney, a frequent visitor to the Oval Office, was never formally interviewed for chief of staff. He met Friday with Trump for a scheduled discussion of the budget showdown, officials said, but left as the acting chief of staff.

Ayers, Mulvaney seen as top contenders

Her surprise selection to head the CFPB would ensure that Mulvaney ... continues to have influence over the agency created in the wake of the financial crisis.

“We had a hierarchy in my office in Congress” ... “If you’re a lobbyist who never gave us money, I didn’t talk to you. If you’re a lobbyist who gave us money, I might talk to you.”

The legal question surrounding Mr. Mulvaney’s appointment stems from a case brought by Leandra English... Trump bypassed Ms. English and instead installed Mr. Mulvaney

His latest recommendations, however, would require lawmakers' help. Changes would have to be made to the Dodd-Frank Act, sweeping legislation passed in 2010 intended to prevent another financial crisis like the one that rocked the U.S. economy in 2008 and 2009.

Mulvaney, a longtime and unapologetic critic of the financial crisis-era bureau, has spent the last several months freezing its enforcement activities, dropping cases on payday lenders and shutting out career staff from major decisions.

"Does it balance? No it doesn't," Mulvaney told reporters on Monday. "I couldn't tell you using solid numbers that we could balance the budget in 10 years."

The ruling addressed a partisan legal spat at an agency thrown into chaos as two acting directors publicly laid claim to the title of rightful, if temporary, leadership.

The dueling assertions of leadership underscored the legal morass that is engulfing the agency after its first director, Richard Cordray, resigned abruptly on Friday, handing the reins to English.

The lawsuit was filed by English herself, not the CFPB, which took the official position that Mulvaney is in charge.

By the end of the night, an agency born of the financial meltdown ... had dueling directors, and there was little sense of who actually would be in charge Monday morning.

As Mulvaney attempted to answer questions, open phone lines featuring a crying baby, an intermittent hacking cough, and patriotic hold-music quickly drowned him out.

Mulvaney also told The Associated Press that “elections have consequences” and Trump must receive funding for the planned border wall in the spending bill.

We’re not sure what Mulvaney has been smoking, except his own propaganda.