WASHINGTON: President-elect Donald Trump named Susie Wiles, one of the top architects of his 2024 presidential campaign, as his White House chief of staff.
"Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history," Trump said in a statement Thursday. "Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again."
Wiles, a veteran Republican political operative, will be the first-ever female White House chief of staff and hold considerable power over operations in the West Wing.
She was widely credited with bringing order and discipline to the chaotic world that Trump often cultivates, and helped him navigate both his race for the White House and the preceding contested primary for the Republican nomination. That put Trump head-to-head against Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor who she helped elect and worked for before a high-profile falling out.
At the White House, Wiles will hope to avoid a similar fate "- though history suggests the job can be difficult to navigate under Trump.
The president-elect repeatedly clashed with his chief-of-staffs during his first term, with his first appointee, Reince Priebus, leaving the post after just 192 days. John Kelly, the second person to hold the role, made headlines in recent weeks when he said Trump was unfit for office and had praised Nazi military officials in closed-door meetings. Trump denied that allegation. Mick Mulvaney, who replaced Kelly, was never actually formally named to the role, instead serving over a year in an acting capacity.
Wiles is the daughter of famed NFL broadcaster Pat Summerall, and has been in politics since 1980 when she worked on Ronald Reagan's presidential campaign.
During his victory speech early Wednesday, Trump said he had "tremendous appreciation" for her and co-chairman Chris LaCivita's role in managing the campaign, while noting that Wiles preferred a behind-the-scenes approach to the job.
"Susie likes to stay in the background "- she's not in the background," Trump said.
