Trump Stands by Chief of Staff Susie Wiles After Vanity Fair Interview

Susie Wiles, chief of staff to President Donald Trump, gave a series of interviews to Vanity Fair (Lean Left bias) regarding her role in the White House, her relationship with the president, and her thoughts on other team and Cabinet members.

Vanity Fair Interviews: Wiles' interviews apparently began in early January 2025, before the president was inaugurated, and continued through November. She defended Trump in most of her answers.

Wiles said she at first questioned Trump's pardoning January 6 participants but eventually "got on board" when she saw that "of the ones he was looking at, in every case, they had already served more time than the sentencing guidelines would have suggested." Vanity Fair cited court documents as evidence that many of the pardoned participants had received sentences lighter than recommended by guidelines.

She conceded on the errant sending of some immigrants to an El Salvador mega prison, though ultimately showed support for the actions: "If somebody is a known gang member who has a criminal past, and you're sure, and you can demonstrate it, it's probably fine to send them to El Salvador or whatever. But if there is a question, I think our process has to lean toward a double-check."

The Vanity Fair writer described Wiles' relationship with her "absentee, alcoholic" father, football legend Pat Summerall, which Wiles said made her "a little bit of an expert in big personalities." She then said Trump has "an alcoholic's personality" and "operates [with] a view that there's nothing he can't do. Nothing, zero, nothing." Wiles also said Vice President J. D. Vance has been "a conspiracy theorist for a decade." 

Trump's Response: Trump told New York Post (Lean Right), "I didn't read it, but I don't read Vanity Fair—but she's done a fantastic job." He also said he was not offended by her word choice in saying he has an "alcoholic's personality." The Hill (Center) included responses from Attorney General Pam Bondi, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Vance, and Donald Trump Jr., showing their support and appreciation for Wiles after the interview was published. 

Split Headlines: Some outlets on the left, like AP (Left), led their articles by framing Wiles as critical of some administration figures, including Pam Bondi. The headline from Washington Examiner (Lean Right) read, "Trump says 'fantastic' Wiles was right to say he has 'alcoholic's personality'."

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