One of the specialties of Susie Wiles, future chief of staff to Donald Trump, is to “create order from chaos”, we can read on her LinkedIn profile. The woman who will become the first woman in American history to occupy this important position also says she “cherishes, above all, the opportunity to make a difference.”
Published at 5:00 a.m.
At 67, Donald Trump’s campaign manager is seen as a key architect of his victory on November 5. Her position will place her at the heart of the administration, as advisor to the president. It will also serve as a bulwark and intermediary against the many people wishing to have direct access to the Oval Office.
But will it have real influence on the president-elect?
“In the Trump White House, the chief of staff doesn’t really have the traditional role of White House chief of staff. At least, in his first term, he never gave power to any of his chiefs of staff,” notes David Cohen, professor of political science at the University of Akron, in Ohio, and co-author of a book forthcoming on the role of chiefs of staff.
PHOTO JABIN BOTSFORD, ARCHIVES THE WASHINGTON POST
Susie Wiles and Donald Trump, last October
Four people have succeeded one another as chief of staff in the Trump administration. The longest-serving president, John Kelly, criticized his former boss late in the election campaign, saying in interviews that he met the definition of a “fascist.” His latest chief of staff, Mark Meadows, still faces criminal charges related to attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election.
Longevity
« [Donald Trump] has a small group of people whose advice he takes and trusts, and [Susie Wiles] seems to be one of those voices he will listen to. So maybe he will listen to it,” says David Lewis of Vanderbilt University in Tennessee. “But this is not a president who is so beholden to the staff…”
Susie Wiles could, however, exert direct influence by participating in the smooth running of the government, on issues for which the president’s attention is not required, adds Mr. Lewis.
Susie Wiles has known the president-elect for nearly 10 years – analysts have pointed to this longevity, in the Trump sphere, as proof of her skill in communicating with him. She helped him win Florida in 2016, when she co-led his campaign in that state.
I think she has a good idea of the tactics that work with him and his personality, which has allowed him to stick around for so long [dans l’entourage de Donald Trump].
David Cohen, professor of political science at the University of Akron, Ohio
Donald Trump praised his chief of staff, writing that she had “helped him achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history.” He described her as “tough, intelligent, creative, admired and respected everywhere.”
Moderate
Susie Wiles’ career path spans several decades: she played a small role in Ronald Reagan’s campaign in the 1980s, before returning to her native Florida. A shadow worker, she became the first female chief of staff to the mayor of Jacksonville. She also helped Rick Scott, then Ron DeSantis, reach the post of governor of Florida. Various media have noted a possible coolness between the future chief of staff at the White House and Mr. DeSantis, seen as a potential presidential candidate at the start of the race for the Republican nomination, ultimately won by Donald Trump.
The mother of two adult daughters and grandmother portrayed herself as a “moderate” in a profile published in April by the American media outlet Politico, under the title “The Most Feared and Least Known Political Operative in America” ( America’s most feared and least known political operative).
“I think, perhaps naively, that if everyone knew what I knew – what I know – they would not have the same feelings towards Donald Trump,” she told journalist Michael Kruse, on his commitment to a candidate far from conventional, even though she comes from a more traditional Republican background.
Challenges
There will be many challenges for Susie Wiles, who will have to maintain the president’s trust while telling him the truth, despite her impulsive nature.
The weight of his influence on Donald Trump could be measured by the appointments of deputies to the chief of staff, believes Mr. Cohen. Will she have free rein to choose her team or will these positions be filled based primarily on the candidates’ loyalty to the new president?
The political scientist also notes this first female presence in this strategic position, in what was “still a man’s world until recently”. “But I think Donald Trump has an old-fashioned view of women, and he may not see so much of the ‘chief’ part of ‘chief of staff’,” he says.
With Politico and the Associated Press
