Trump picks Susie Wiles as chief of staff

Donald Trump picked Susie Wiles as chief of staff for his return to the White House. The president-elect announced his choice through a statement in which he highly praised Wiles, whom he described as a woman who is "strong, smart, innovative and is universally admired and respected."

Wiles, a veteran Florida politician with a background in the office of Congressman Jack Kemp and in the Ronald Reagan administration, has been working with Trump for a few years. First, managing his previous two campaigns in the Sunshine State, then as executive director of the Save America PAC and most recently as one of the directors of his latest presidential campaign.

Her work in Florida is not limited to just Trump, as she also worked for Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Rick Scott, who is in the race to succeed Mitch McConnell as Senate Republican leader.

In turn, Trump greatly appreciated that Wiles reached out to him after Jan. 6, 2021, when his public image had been weakened.

"Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my 2016 and 2020 successful campaigns. Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again," the Trump campaign said in a statement.

"It is a well deserved honor to have Susie as the first-ever female Chief of Staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud," the statement continued, noting that she will be the first woman to hold the position since its creation in 1946.

"The boss trusts her"

Wiles' name had been in the shuffle for the post since late October, although the main doubt was whether or not she would accept it. "She’s the biggest reason why Trump has a more professional and organized campaign this cycle, insiders say. They appreciate her instituting order on an otherwise chaotic political menagerie and credit her zero-tolerance policy on backbiting for an era of relative peace in their orbit,"  Politico reported a few weeks ago.

As for other names, those of Brooke Rollins and Kevin McCarthy had also been mentioned. The former was director of the Domestic Policy Council and current president of the MAGA think tank, the America First Policy Institute, while the latter is the former speaker of the House of Representatives.

"Most importantly: The boss trusts her. While Trump doesn’t always listen, they’ve established a rapport where Wiles can be frank with the former president and tell him when she disagrees — not something many are willing to do in the face of Trump’s occasional temper," Politico added.

All of Donald Trump's chiefs of staff