President-elect Donald Trump wasted no time appointing team members to his upcoming White House cabinet.
His first appointment made history, as he named Susie Wiles as the first female White House chief of staff in history.
Trump made the announcement late Thursday, praising Wiles in a statement saying:
“Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally 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-ever female Chief of Staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud.”
Donald Trump names Susie Wiles his White House chief of staff, in a statement calling her “tough, smart, innovative” — and history making.
“It is a well deserved honor to have Susie as the first-ever female Chief of Staff in United States history,” Trump says. pic.twitter.com/yHDdmAlKUV
— Katherine Doyle (@katiadoyl) November 7, 2024
But who exactly is Susie Wiles? And why did Trump select her for this top cabinet role?
According to multiple reports, Wiles has been widely credited for running behind-the-scenes what was Trump’s well-executed campaign presidential campaign.
During his victory celebration in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump gave a special thanks to Wiles for her prominent role in the campaign.
“Let me also express my tremendous appreciation for Susie [Wiles] and Chris [LaCivita], on the job you did. Susie, come, Susie,” he said. “Susie likes to stay sort of in the back, let me tell you. The ice baby. We call her the ice baby. Susie likes to stay in the background. She’s not in the background.”
Trump described Wiles as “tough, smart, innovative” and said she is “universally admired and respected.”
“I have no doubt that she will make our country proud,” Trump added.
When asked about Wiles’ appointment, veteran GOP strategist John Brabender told Fox News, “If they searched high and low in the entire world, there is not a better choice than Susie Wiles for White House Chief of Staff.”
Wiles is no stranger to working with successful campaigns and understanding the rigors of Washington DC.
Wiles is a longtime Florida-based Republican strategist who ran Trump’s campaigns in the state in 2016 and 2020, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ successful bid for office in 2018. Before that, she ran Rick Scott’s 2010 campaign for Florida governor and briefly served as the manager of former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman’s 2012 presidential campaign.
Wiles also worked in the offices of former Jacksonville mayors John Delaney and John Peyton.
Chris LaCivita, who along with Wiles served as Trump’s dual campaign managers, described Wiles as someone who is inclusive in conversations, who seeks input from others and is steadfastly loyal.
“Susie is just functionally built differently because she has that rare commodity to be able to work on so many different important issues simultaneously,” LaCivita told The Associated Press (AP).
Wiles was the one who was tasked with having tough and honest discussions with Trump and on every pivotal conversation.
According to the AP, Wiles was pivotal working with Trump’s family and helping develop relationships with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Elon Musk that put her in position as a key conduit for Trump’s budding alliances with those men.
“She can manage really any ego that comes her way,” LaCivita added. “And she doesn’t do it by any other way other than just being very straightforward and on top of the details.”
LaCivita also said about Wiles: “The most important commodity in politics is honesty and loyalty and Susie has both in copious amounts.”