Susie Wiles, who serves as the White House‘s Chief of Staff, delivered an explosive number of quotes to Vanity Fair that seemingly exposed the inner turmoil among the administration. In the wake of the profile going live, Susie Wiles claims that the article was reframed as a hit piece, and we examine some of the finer points of the profile below.
Vanity Fair’s Chris Whipple shadowed Susie Wiles over the past year of President Donald Trump’s time at the White House, examining the inner workings of the administration, most especially during times of crisis. Wiles’ role as chief of staff gives her access to the president and members of the administration top to bottom, leading to some sharp observations that were captured by Whipple.
It should be noted that the article frames Wiles’ relationship with Vice President JD Vance, State Secretary Marco Rubio, and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller as favorable. Yet, it appears that Whipple was able to get Wiles to reveal candid thoughts about her political allies, including AG Pam Bondi, in ways that few would’ve expected.
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In the slideshow below, we’re centering some of the bigger moments of the two-part Vanity Fair interview, including Susie Wiles speaking on President Donald Trump’s personality, Elon Musk, and more.
Susie Wiles said that Trump has an “alcoholic’s personality.”
“Some clinical psychologist that knows one million times more than I do will dispute what I’m going to say. But high-functioning alcoholics or alcoholics in general, their personalities are exaggerated when they drink. And so I’m a little bit of an expert in big personalities.” Wiles said Trump has “an alcoholic’s personality.”* He “operates [with] a view that there’s nothing he can’t do. Nothing, zero, nothing.”
*In fairness, President Trump reportedly does not drink.
Wiles framed JD Vance’s devotion to Trump as a political career move
Wiles told Whipple that Vice President JD Vance’s transformation from a Trump critic to an avowed supporter of his agenda was a “sort of political” move on Vance’s part. She also said that Vance was “a conspiracy theorist for a decade.”
Wiles on Elon Musk: “He’s an odd, odd duck.”
Wiles was deeply critical of Elon Musk and his brief time as the DOGE chief and the damage the agency inflicted on federal programs. Wiles attempted to push back against the billionaire Tesla founder but could do little to stop him.
From Vanity Fair:
Wiles described Musk as something akin to a jacked-up Nosferatu. “The challenge with Elon is keeping up with him,” she told me. “He’s an avowed ketamine [user]. And he sleeps in a sleeping bag in the EOB [Executive Office Building] in the daytime. And he’s an odd, odd duck, as I think geniuses are. You know, it’s not helpful, but he is his own person.”
Wiles was critical of Trump’s tariff policy
Wiles may have had the president’s ear on some issues, but his steadfast desire to impose steep tariffs on foreign goods was not a harmonious march within the White House.
“So much thinking out loud is what I would call it,” Wiles said of Trump’s tariff plans. As the outlet noted, a recent poll from Harvard revealed that 56 percent of voters believe the tariff policy has harmed consumers.
Wiles appeared critical of Pam Bondi’s handling of the Epstein Files
Despite U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s earlier insistence on releasing the files on deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, Wiles called out a moment when Bond greeted several conservative social media thought leaders who led the charge on seeing the contents of the so-called Epstein files.
From Vanity Fair:
“First she gave them binders full of nothingness. And then she said that the witness list, or the client list, was on her desk. There is no client list, and it sure as hell wasn’t on her desk.”
Wiles gave cover to some of Trump’s stances against women
In the second part of the Vanity Fair interview, much attention is given to President Trump’s often icy relationship with women reporters, including one he referred to as “piggy” in a shocking moment. Wiles excused Trump’s verbal snaps at women as a means of defense.
“He’s a counterpuncher. And increasingly, in our society, the punchers are women,” Wiles said.
