Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie and Jared Kushner are reportedly on the shortlist for the job of White House chief of staff.
Donald Trump met with Mr Christie on Thursday and considered him a top contender for the role, sources told Reuters, confirming a report by Axios.
Mr Christie, a brash, tough-talking politician, was a contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 but abandoned the attempt after a poor showing in the New Hampshire primary and subsequently endorsed Mr Trump, becoming his adviser throughout the 2016 campaign.
Other sources said Mr Trump was hearing appeals from some advisers to consider Mr Kushner, a top White House aide who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, for the chief of staff job.
Mr Kushner met with the Republican leader to discuss the job, according to the Huffington Post, which first reported the story.
"I am not aware that he is under consideration but, as I think all of us here would recognise, he would be great in any role that the president chooses to put him in," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said of the news, which was also reported by CBS.
"He has done a tremendous job on a number of fronts, whether it was on trade or what we’ve seen play out over the last week on criminal justice reform. He’s done a great job on all those efforts," Sanders said.
But one source told Reuters Mr Kushner was currently not inclined to pursue the position.
On Thursday, Mr Trump said he was considering as many as five people to fill the vacancy that will be left when his current chief, retired General John Kelly, leaves the job early in the new year.
One source said that over the last few days "numerous people have reached out to the president to suggest" picking Mr Kushner on the thinking that he is close to the president and has had a number of successes, such as helping negotiate a new trade pact with Mexico and Canada and advancing prison reform legislation.Those urging Mr Kushner include some of the president’s outside advisers and some administration officials, the source said.
"It’s possible that this is why this is appearing at this moment in time, especially because what everyone knows you need is someone who has a good relationship with the president," the source said.
Mr Kushner and wife Ivanka had been advocating for Nick Ayers, the chief of staff for Vice President Mike Pence. But Mr Ayers turned down an offer for the position last weekend because he could not commit to the full two years Mr Trump wanted.
Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican who heads the hard-right Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives, showed more interest – but also ultimately withdrew his candidacy.
One Trump confidant, who asked to remain unidentified, said Mr Trump should just pick his son-in-law.
"You want consistency, knowing he’ll be here for two more years, just name Jared and let him do it the way he wants," the confidant told Reuters.
Another potential pick as chief of staff, former campaign adviser David Bossie, was at the White House for meetings on Thursday, but was not believed to have met with the president.