The president’s once-unassailable ice maiden is melting.
As Republicans brace for a midterm election blue wave, Donald Trump is looking for someone to blame. Enter: Susie Wiles. The White House chief of staff is reportedly on the brink of losing her job, according to insiders that spoke with Zeteo Friday.
One top Trump adviser told the progressive news outlet that Wiles is “in some deep shit.”
The confirmation follows reporting from Politico, which revealed in its morning newsletter Thursday that Trump has been ringing his allies for their opinions on Wiles’s potential successor—and the reviews of Wiles’s performance have not been good.
“She’s burned a lot of people,” a Republican operative close to the White House told Politico.
One senior elected Republican official who fielded Trump’s call told the digital newsroom that the president had raised “the first honest questions about Susie.”
Possible replacements include deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller or—as a left-field option—Randy Levine, the president of the New York Yankees, insiders told Politico. Other options extend to U.S. Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, real estate developer turned federal housing director Bill Pulte, and ousted House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Still, Trump shied away from committing to the turnover, ardently defending Wiles in a statement.
“TOTAL FAKE NEWS Politico doesn’t care about facts, integrity, or honest journalism—it’s why I kicked them out of the White House!” the president told Politico. “Susie Wiles is my loyal and longest serving Chief of Staff—there is a reason for that. She has been with me since the beginning, is my trusted advisor, and has my COMPLETE confidence.”
Trump reportedly “blew up” after his “human printer,” Natalie Harp, printed out copies of the Politico report for him later Thursday. The briefing sent the president into a full-blown “freakout,” according to three sources that spoke with Politico afterward. Wiles and her team “burn[ed] up phones around town” attempting to settle the situation.
“The White House is in a state of panic. Susie is looking over her shoulder, trying to solicit people to go out and say good things about her and her team and make it seem like everything is fine. It’s not,” a person close to the president told Politico.