US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that his long-serving and top aide Susie Wiles has been removed as chief of staff, and will be replaced by Stephen Miller.
This was reported by The Washington Post.
“I am pleased to announce that Mr Stephen Miller, the current deputy chief of staff in the Trump administration and one of my most trusted advisers, will become chief of staff on Monday, 9 November 2026,” Trump wrote on Friday afternoon on Truth Social. “Susie Wiles, who has done an outstanding job, will move to Trump’s Political Department. I want to thank her for her service as chief of staff.”
Wiles made history as the first woman to become White House chief of staff. She also served the longest as chief of staff across Trump’s two terms; during his first presidency he dismissed four. She was known for her even-tempered manner, and Donald Trump himself called her the “Iron Lady”.
Wiles has extensive experience in politics, starting out as a receptionist and then as an aide to Congressman Jack Kemp, and working on Reagan’s 1980 campaign.
From 1997 to 2000, she served as chief of staff to Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney. She later ran Rick Scott’s successful campaign for Governor of Florida. For a short time, she led Jon Huntsman’s 2012 presidential campaign. From November 2022, together with Chris LaCivita, she headed Trump’s election campaign.
After Republicans’ defeat in the midterm elections, US media reported that Donald Trump might dismiss Wiles, blaming her for the failure. A number of influential figures in the MAGA movement called for this, including former White House adviser Steve Bannon, who said Wiles should be “removed immediately” over the Republican Party’s defeat. According to The Wall Street Journal, Donald Trump sounded out those around him about how Wiles was performing her duties.
Stephen Miller had until now held two roles: deputy White House chief of staff for policy and the president’s homeland security adviser. For years, he has been one of Donald Trump’s closest aides. In the first administration (2017–2021), Miller served as a senior adviser to the president and oversaw speechwriting. Miller is an ideologue of a hardline programme of immigration enforcement and the deportation of undocumented migrants. Former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy called Miller “Trump’s brain”.
Despite his focus on domestic policy, Stephen Miller often spoke out on foreign policy as well. He notably defended Donald Trump’s idea of seizing Greenland, saying that the US can freely overthrow national governments and seize foreign territories and resources if it serves the national interest.