White House staff shakeups are common after a midterm drubbing, but few Republicans apparently expected President Donald Trump to remove one of his more sober aides and replacing her with a ‘dark lord’ lightning rod for litigation and congressional outcry, said Sources Say reporter Juliegrace Brufke.
Trump announced on Truth Social that he was moving controversial Stephen Miller up to chief of staff and jettisoning veteran Susie Wiles to his campaign wing.
“I am pleased to announce that Mr. Stephen Miller, the current Deputy Chief of Staff of the Trump Administration, and one of my most trusted advisors, will become the Chief of Staff starting Monday, November 9, 2026. Susie Wiles, who has done an outstanding job, will be moving over to the Trump Political Operation. I want to thank her for her service as Chief of Staff — She has done a great job!” Trump announced online.
The president had said three weeks ago that there was “zero chance” he’d replace Susie Wiles, however. When asked, the president had even told Politico “TOTAL FAKE NEWS,” and he called Wiles “my loyal and longest serving Chief of Staff.” He’d even claimed she’d be around “for a long time.”
“Turns out ‘a long time’ was about three weeks,” reports Brufke.
But Miller is nothing if not controversial himself. He is a top Trump aide and a leading force behind the immigration enforcement operations that lead to the deaths of U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good at the hands of federal agents earlier this year.
Immediately after Pretti’s killing, Miller called Pretti “a would-be assassin,” even though videos appeared to contradict claims by Trump officials that Pretti had attacked agents.
And not all Republicans are thrilled about the promotion, reports Brufke.
“‘Yuk,’ one lawmaker told us,” said Brufke, adding that even before news broke of Miller’s promotion GOP lawmakers were blaming Miller’s border policies for the party’s losses on Tuesday, referring to him as “the prince of darkness.”
“After my surprise, my first thought was the President doesn’t plan to back down the next two years,” said another lawmaker.
“Let’s double down on stupid,” a senior GOP member told Brufke, who then added that “we’ve heard that one a lot this week.”
Still more GOP lawmakers delivered major venom and harsh language at the prospect of Miller being the face of the Trump White House.
“F—— idiot,” one Republican lawmaker told Brifke, referring possibly to either Miller or Trump for promoting him.
“Buckle the f—— up. Things are about to get wild,” a GOP operative said.
Meanwhile, Brufke said Democrats are chomping at the bit for a fight with Miller, with Miller appearing to “have only sharpened the Democratic appetite for investigations.”
She then cited likely-soon-to-be House Oversight Chairman Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) posting ““Lawyer up,” on X.