We seem to be fast approaching the winter of Trumpian discontent. The midterms are approaching, the mood within the White House is strained, and knives are being drawn on Pennsylvania Avenue.
There’s the fuss over Katie Zacharia, the somewhat verbally challenged White House Press Secretary, and the surprisingly tough treatment meted out to her by Sean Hannity on Fox News last night. There’s the apparent volte-face over the fate of Nidal Malik Hasan, as Donald Trump declared that Hasan’s execution will not in fact be live-streamed. “He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad,” said the Commander-in-Chief. “But this event will not be streamed.” The President’s clear contradiction of what Pete Hegseth promised last week adds more fuel to the rumors that the Secretary of War may lose his job after the midterms, as Team Trump tries to find someone to blame for the disaster that is the Iran War.
The gossips in Washington are divided over who will be first to go: Katie or Susie
Most explosive of all, there are the vicious whispers around Susie Wiles, the White House Chief of Staff. Wiles was reportedly frozen out of the decision to appoint Zacharia and may or may not have let some journalists know she was unhappy about that.
The White House, for what it is worth, disputes the idea that Wiles disapproved of Zacharia’s hire. Still, the gossips in Washington are divided over who will be first to go: Katie or Susie.
Politico reported this week that Trump has been soliciting advice as to whether or not to replace Wiles, a woman he has been at pains to praise throughout his first term. Wiles is often given credit for the fact that, compared to the first term, Trump 2.0 has been a relatively stable ship. Countless Wiles profiles have psychoanalyzed the curious relationship between Trump and her – the naughty father figure with his sensible Susie, etc. And sure enough, the Donald yesterday moved quickly to quash the story.
“TOTAL FAKE NEWS. Politico doesn’t care about facts, integrity, or honest journalism – it’s why I kicked them out of the White House!” he posted on social media. “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. President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
But there’s little doubt that various Trumpworld figures have long resented Wiles’s power and influence – as well as her reputation as a rare straight-shooter in the wild-west grifterville of MAGA. You often hear soi-disant insiders grumbling about Susie’s past work as a lobbyist. And it’s not surprising that, as the Trumpworld play-by-play allegations pile on top of each other and the latest polls suggest that voters now regard “corruption” as their most pressing concern, we see several stories connecting Katie Wiles, Susie’s daughter, to shady Russian operatives.
Wiles may have been planning to leave after the midterms anyway. She’s just survived a bout with cancer and she could want some time out to decide which future presidential campaign she wants to support. Running is more fun than governing, as everyone in DC knows. And what seems clear is that, with or without Wiles, the last two years of the Trump presidency are shaping up to be more chaotic than perhaps any other phase of his turbulent life.
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