“That’s it, she’s a goner” is the typical media response to the Susie Wiles interview for Vanity Fair, part 1. But a week later, she’s still there. A deep dive into why reveals surprising relationships and an unexpected power interaction with implications for the future of this chaotic administration.
Susie Wiles, White House Chief of Staff and Trump’s 2024 campaign manager, formerly worked for Ron DeSantis before crossing over to Trump. She worked her way up to the top echelons of the Republican Party and, along the way, earned an impressive reputation among the party’s movers and shakers. The first thing former Republicans and never-Trumpers will tell you about Susie is that she is the only person in the current administration who is actually qualified for the position she holds. That includes the narcissistic dimwit sitting behind the desk in the Oval Office.
Dana Bash noted in a CNN YouTube short, December 16:
That Susie Wiles suddenly emerged from the obscurity of behind-the-scenes leadership into the high-profile spotlight of a Vanity Fair feature article was not due to any external pressure. When writer Chris Whipple requested an interview, Susie didn’t hesitate to agree. She didn’t need to be persuaded, and it wasn’t that she didn’t know of Whipple’s work or Whipple himself. They’d been on mutually respected terms of acquaintanceship since the 1980s. For a woman described as “very strategic and very sharp”, this was unquestionably an intentional decision.
The first of a series of hour-long interviews began in February 2025. Eleven interviews later, the first feature article was published and instantly created a media firestorm.
Both right-wing and left-leaning media thought she was on her way out the door, given her stark criticism of the leading lights around Trump, and of Trump himself. Among them were such disparaging assessments as:
However, those who predicted her professional demise via prompt resignation or presidential firing were quickly proven wrong. Given the declarations of overwhelming support from her “core team” (JD Vance, Marco Rubio, and Stephen Miller) and their satellites (Russell Vought, Pam Bondi, Caroline Leavitt, and the deputy chiefs, Dan Scavino and James Blair) at the White House, Susie Wiles wasn’t going anywhere.
Chris Whipple was Rick Wilson’s guest on a podcast that aired on December 20. He explained that initially, he’d approached Wiles for an interview about her experience as Trump’s campaign manager.
Following the publication of the Vanity Fair interview (part 1), Whipple was initially set back by Wiles’ response, given her very open cooperation over the ten months of interviews. But her reaction, though not honest, was predictable. She had to provide a sop of some kind to those feeling the sting of her criticism.
We don’t need to show more for you to get the gist of Wiles’ response. It was performative and worked as intended. That is to say, it instantly placated Trump and lulled all those in Susie’s orbit back into their comfort zone around her.
This is a significant data point in the dynamics of the White House administration. Susie Wiles is the central authority figure, not because she conspicuously wields power, but because she is the voice of intelligence, organised practicality and, above all, calm. She is the grown-up. In a space where ambition, superegos and professional anxiety are constantly bumping up against each other, Susie Wiles is the cool head in the room.
This is evident in the reactions of those around her.
These are brief excerpts. The full quotes are overflowing with effusive praise and absolute trust, all of which speaks to their reliance on Wiles. The underlying message is that they’re far more panicked by the thought of her leaving than by anything she said to Chris Whipple.
It is also evident in Chris Whipple’s observations of Susie’s interactions with other power centres in the White House. Rick Wilson asks him to talk about how different Trump 1.0 is from the current term.
