When President-elect Donald Trump delivered his election night victory speech on Tuesday, he singled out one person for special thanks.
“Let me also express my immense appreciation for Susie…” Trump beamed, turning to his family and staff gathered on the stage at his campaign headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida.
‘The work you did. Come on, Susie. Come here Susie,” he beckoned. “Susie likes to stay a little bit in the back… We call her the ice cream girl.”
Then the phalanx of towering, designer-clad women, including Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara and Don Jr.’s fiancée Kimberly Guilfoyle, parted and a gray-haired grandmother in a pale blouse and gold hoop earrings stepped forward.
When Trump invites someone to the lectern, they usually almost trip over themselves to get there. But not Susie Wiles.
The 67-year-old shook the president-elect’s hand and smiled, but when he suggested she “say a few words,” her eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously “no.”
When Trump invites someone to the lectern, they usually almost trip over themselves to get there. But not Susie Wiles (top left).
Described as the ‘most feared and least known political agent’, this woman studiously avoids the spotlight. Although we’ll probably all see more of her now.
On Thursday night, Trump appointed her as White House chief of staff — making her the first woman ever named for the role of presidential gatekeeper.
It was rumored that Wiles – Trump’s de facto presidential campaign manager and the daughter of a famous (and infamous) NFL sports broadcaster – had been eyeing this role for some time.
And other names were circulating, such as Brooke Rollins, a right-wing lawyer who led domestic policy during the first Trump administration, and Kevin McCarthy, the former Republican speaker of the House of Representatives.
It was reported that Trump was looking for a chief with deep experience in Washington DC, similar to some of his short-lived first-term appointments; Congressmen Mick Mulvaney and Mark Meadows.
But Wiles prevailed — perhaps because of her proven ability to do what Trump’s other leaders could not — by keeping the boss on the line.
Despite some huge problems in the Trump 2024 campaign, including a disastrous September debate performance against Vice President Kamala Harris and a disastrously ill-timed performance with 9/11 conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer at a 9/11 memorial event, Wiles is credited with running a disciplined ministry.
That says a lot in Trump world.
But discipline is Susie’s modus operandi.
A friend of Wiles and former U.S. Ambassador Carlos Trujillo said the New Jersey native, who cut her teeth in politics as an aide to a legendary New York Republican politician, keeps the trains running on time.
“Her professional staff is among the best … and is fiercely loyal to her and her vision,” he said. But her specialty, he claimed, is “managing personalities and managing information.”
On Thursday night, Trump appointed her as White House chief of staff — making her the first woman ever named for the role of presidential gatekeeper. (Above) Susie Wiles on ‘Trump Force One’ in 2023
But Wiles prevailed — perhaps because of her proven ability to do what Trump’s other leaders could not — by keeping the boss on the line. (Above) Wiles with Chris LaCivita, co-chairman of the Trump campaign
A rare, deeply personal profile of Wiles, published earlier this year by Politico, addressed how her troubled upbringing perversely prepared her for this role.
As mentioned, she is the daughter of the late Pat Summerall, an NFL player who became one of America’s most iconic sportscasters. He was also an alcoholic.
Summerall, who died in 2013, wrote in his memoirs about his drinking and the extramarital affair that led to his divorce from Wiles’ mother, admitting: ‘My children grew up without me. I failed them as a father.’
The article notes how the children of alcoholics often learn to deal with chaotic situations and people: “They can learn to make themselves invaluable or invisible – and when to be the former, and when to be the latter.”
It was father Pat who helped Wiles get her first job, working for his ex-New York Giants teammate turned politician, Jack Kemp – then a beloved New York congressman.
From there, Wiles went to work for Ronald Reagan’s presidential campaign before starting her career in Florida. There Wiles made a name for himself as a real political operator.
“I’ve described her as a political savant — just otherworldly political instincts,” said ex-Jacksonville Mayor John Delaney, for whom she worked. ‘Susie is a brilliant tactician, a facilitator.’
In 2008, Wiles became Duval County co-chair in Senator John McCain’s failed presidential campaign. She then helped launch the career of businessman Rick Scott before joining a major government lobbying firm.
Those who know Wiles best say she is an expert at shaping political narratives and not above leaking information to reporters when it is in her director’s interest. And according to employees, there’s something else you should know about Wiles: don’t bother her.
Summerall (left), who died in 2013, wrote in his memoirs about his drinking and the extramarital affair that led to his divorce from Wiles’ mother, admitting: ‘My children grew up without me. I failed them as a father.’
“She’s one of those people who goes by the old line: F*** me? No. F*** you,” veteran political operative Rick Wilson told Politico.
That’s a lesson Florida Governor Ron DeSantis may have learned the hard way.
In 2012, Wiles took charge of DeSantis’ primary campaign and later helped him win his 2018 Florida gubernatorial race.
But after DeSantis reached the governor’s mansion, a spectacular brawl took place. The reasons have never been made public, but there have been suggestions that DeSantis and his wife Casey felt Wiles was getting too much credit for his political ascendancy.
So they went their separate professional ways in 2019, even as Wiles was still grappling with a personal crisis — a divorce from her husband, Lanny Wiles in 2017 (they have two daughters together).
It was a move DeSantis may now regret.
Fast forward to the 2024 Republican primaries – Wiles was on Team Trump.
The pair first met in 2015 and then reconnected in 2020 after Trump hit his own low following an election loss and the Capitol riots on Jan. 6.
But now Trump was back, taking on Wiles’ own former client and a crowded field of Republican White House hopefuls.
Suddenly, stories began to surface in the media portraying DeSantis as socially awkward and even strangely bizarre.
When it came to DeSantis, “Wiles knows where the bodies are buried,” Roger Stone, himself a master of the dark political arts, told the New York Times.
In March 2023, it was reported that during a private plane trip from Tallahassee to Washington DC in March 2019, the governor of Florida allegedly ate pudding with three fingers.
DeSantis has denied the incident ever happened. But the story stuck.
When it came to DeSantis, “Wiles knows where the bodies are buried,” Roger Stone, himself a master of the dark political arts, told the New York Times.
Media commentators and critics began to focus on the way DeSantis appeared to grimace and grit his teeth while in the 2024 primary debate stage.
In April, he was compared to a bobblehead doll after energetically shaking his head from side to side while sparring with belligerent reporters during a trip to Tokyo, Japan.
And in October, the political world was gripped by speculation that 5’11” DeSantis was wearing lifts in his cowboy boots, earning him the nickname “Tiny D.”
It’s unclear how these stories appeared in the media, but some have their suspicions.
“She knew,” former Florida Republican Congressman David Jolly told Politico, “exactly how to defeat Ron DeSantis on behalf of her client.”
Now Wiles will put her skills to work where they can be needed most.
She and her boss have defeated all the newcomers – but can they overcome the most crucial challenge of all: governing?