President-elect Trump appoints Susie Wiles as chief of staff, the first woman to hold the position

WASHINGTON (AP) – President-elect Donald Trump has named Susie Wiles, the de facto manager of his victorious campaign, as his White House chief of staff, the first woman to hold that influential role.

Wiles is widely recognized inside and outside Trump's inner circle for having run by far his most disciplined and well-executed campaign and was considered the best contender for the position. She largely avoided the spotlight and even refused to take the microphone to speak as Trump celebrated his victory early Wednesday morning. She resisted the formal title of campaign manager and didn't want to become a target, considering Trump has repeatedly thwarted people in that role in the past.

Hiring Wiles is Trump's first big decision as president-elect and could be a crucial test for his new administration as he needs to quickly build the team that will help run the vast federal government. Wiles doesn't have much experience in the federal government, but he has a close relationship with the president-elect.

On the campaign trail, Wiles managed to do what few others have managed to do: control Trump's impulses – not by reprimanding him or lecturing him, but by earning his respect and showing him that he would feel better if he followed her advice. than to disrespect him.

During his first term, Trump had four chiefs of staff — including one who served as an actor for a year — amid record-breaking staff turnover. Many senior aides were pushed out by Trump in his first term because they resented being made to feel manipulated or condescended to, while others became embroiled in ideological infighting within the factional West Wing.

“Susie is tough, smart, innovative and widely admired and respected. “Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again,” Trump said in a statement. “It is a well-deserved honor to have Susie as the first female Chief of Staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud.”

Successful chiefs of staff serve as confidants to the president, helping to implement the president's agenda and balancing competing policy and policy priorities. They also tend to act as watchdogs, helping to determine who the president spends his time with and who he speaks to – an exercise that has chafed Trump in the White House.

The chief of staff is “absolutely critical to an effective White House,” said Chris Whipple, whose book “The Gatekeepers” details how the role of the White House chief of staff shapes and defines a presidency. “Ultimately, the most important thing is to tell the president what he doesn’t want to hear.”

“On the positive side, she's shown that she can handle Trump, that she works with him and can sometimes tell him hard truths, and that's really important,” Whipple said. “The downside is that she really has no experience in the White House and hasn't really worked in Washington in 40 years. And that’s a real disadvantage.”

Wiles is a longtime Florida-based Republican strategist who ran Trump's campaigns in the state in 2016 and 2020 and managed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' successful 2018 candidacy. Previously, she managed Rick Scott's 2010 campaign for governor of Florida and briefly served as manager of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman's 2012 presidential campaign.

Chris LaCivita, who served as campaign co-manager with Wiles, wrote on X: “So happy and proud of one of the fiercest and most loyal warriors I've ever had the pleasure of working with!!!”

Wiles was viewed by Trump aides as someone who could direct his moods and impulses without necessarily constraining them. Trump often referred to Wiles on the campaign trail and publicly praised her leadership in what he often said was his “best-run campaign.”

“She is incredible. Unbelievable,” he said at a rally in Milwaukee earlier this month.

At a rally in Pennsylvania, where Trump made one of his final appearances before the election, he launched into a profane and conspiratorial speech. Wiles was seen standing backstage, seemingly glaring at him.

Later, at a rally in Pittsburgh, Trump appeared to acknowledge his adviser's efforts to keep him informed.

After complaining that men were no longer allowed to call a woman “beautiful,” he asked if he could remove that word from the record. “I'm allowed to do that, right, Susan Wiles?” he mused.