Beginning mid-May 1991 , several damaging stories about Sununu , many of them involving taxpayer funded trips on air force jets , surfaced . Bush was reluctant to dismiss Sununu until December 1991 , when Sununu was forced to resign . Secretary of Transportation Samuel K. Skinner , who earned plaudits for his handling of the Exxon Valdez oil spill , replaced Sununu as chief of staff . Clayton Yeutter also joined the administration as a Counselor to the President for domestic policy
Exxon Valdez oil spill
Exxon Valdez oil spill
Presidency of George H. W. Bush