TRUMP WAVES HANDS

Breaking: US President-elect Donald Trump makes first key appointment as he begins to assemble his team

President-elect Donald Trump has tapped his campaign senior adviser Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff.

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Wiles, who amassed outsized influence as Trumpโ€™s de facto campaign manager, will be the first woman to ever hold the title of White House chief of staff. Many have credited the professionalization of the most recent Trump campaign to Wilesโ€™ leadership.

โ€œSusie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my 2016 and 2020 successful campaigns,โ€ Trump said in a statement. โ€œSusie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again.

A veteran of Florida politics, Wiles directed Trumpโ€™s campaign to victory in the state in 2016. She also helped lead Ron DeSantisโ€™ 2018 campaign for Florida governor, before a falling out that prompted the Florida governor to successfully lobby the Trump team to fire her. Wiles was brought back shortly thereafter for the 2020 campaign in Florida.

Despite having little experience in the nationโ€™s capital, Wiles will become the White Houseโ€™s envoy to the sprawling executive branch agencies and to Congress.