Bannon vs. Kushner: “Here’s the reason there’s no middle ground. You’re a Democrat.”

On one side are Mr. Bannon’s guerrilla warriors, eager to close the nation’s borders, dismantle decades of regulations, empower police departments and take on the establishment of both parties in Washington. On the other are Mr. Kushner’s “Democrats,” an appellation used to describe even Republicans who want to soften Mr. Trump’s rough edges and broaden his narrow popular appeal after months of historically low poll numbers.

In the middle is Mr. Trump himself, seemingly torn between the two factions, tilting one way or the other depending on the day, or even the hour, while he seeks to recapture momentum after a series of defeats in Congress and the courts. As he did throughout his career in business and entertainment, Mr. Trump plays advisers off one another, encouraging a sort of free-for-all competition for influence and ideas within his circle, so long as everyone demonstrates loyalty to him…

But the main players have grown so wary of leaving Mr. Trump’s side that it has become hard to organize meetings of senior officials without him, to thrash through policies or hiring choices, slowing up an already fitful process. Meanwhile, the conflicting sides have been waging proxy battles through friendly news media outlets.

While alliances have been fluid in this White House, Mr. Kushner is joined by more centrist-minded advisers including not only his wife, Ivanka Trump, who now has her own West Wing office, but also Gary Cohn, the president’s national economics adviser, and Dina Powell, a deputy national security adviser, both veterans of Goldman Sachs.