Trump Reportedly Weighs Replacing Susie Wiles As White House Pushes Back
President Donald Trump is reportedly considering replacing White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles — raising questions about the future of one of his most trusted aides less than three weeks before the midterm elections.
Four people with direct knowledge of the conversations told Politico’s Playbook that Trump has been asking friends and political allies about Wiles’ performance and floating potential successors, Mediaite reported Thursday.
Trump forcefully rejected the report, calling it “TOTAL FAKE NEWS” and insisting Wiles retains his “COMPLETE confidence.”
The reported discussions come as Republicans fight to preserve their congressional majorities and Trump grows frustrated with his political standing, according to Playbook. The report describes private conversations about a possible change, rather than an announced decision to remove Wiles.
Familiar Names Surface
Among the names Trump has reportedly floated are Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and New York Yankees President Randy Levine.
Other potential replacements mentioned in the report include Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Wiles’ critics have sought to capitalize on the moment by forwarding unfavorable coverage involving the chief of staff and people close to her, according to Playbook.
“She’s burned a lot of people,” one Republican operative close to the White House told the newsletter.
But the White House dismissed the anonymous accounts. Spokesperson Danielle Alvarez said the sources “know nothing,” describing the administration as a “united team focused on his America First agenda – not the egos and political games of anonymous outsiders.”
Trump also defended Wiles’ loyalty and tenure in his statement to Playbook.
“Susie Wiles is my loyal and longest serving Chief of Staff — there is a reason for that,” he said.
Consulting Work Draws Scrutiny
The speculation follows scrutiny of foreign consulting and lobbying work involving members of Wiles’ political circle, including longtime Trump advisers James Blair and Chris LaCivita, as well as her daughter, Katie Wiles.
The Financial Times reported that Katie Wiles is a partner at Continental Strategy, a lobbying firm with a $35,000-a-month contract to represent Republika Srpska, the Bosnian Serb entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The firm said Katie Wiles did not lobby U.S. officials on the client’s behalf. Her role, according to the newspaper, involved communications support for a feasibility study.
A Central Figure In Trump’s Operation
Wiles helped guide Trump’s return to the White House before becoming chief of staff at the beginning of his second term.
She also remains involved in the president’s midterm strategy. The Washington Post reported Monday that Wiles, White House political director Matt Brasseaux and Blair, now an outside adviser, have worked together to determine where Trump can be most useful on the campaign trail.
The latest political scrutiny follows a difficult personal year. Wiles continued working while receiving treatment for breast cancer after her diagnosis became public in March. On September 16, she announced that pathology results from the Mayo Clinic had come back clear and that she was cancer-free.
