President Donald Trump’s White House is once again embroiled in chaos after the abrupt departure of his new press secretary, and now, his one-time biographer has predicted the “inevitable” next firing from the administration.
Within the span of a work week, right-wing commentator Katie Zacharia made her debut as White House press secretary in a disastrously bad briefing, was caught out for false claims about being a lawyer and was pushed out of the office after just five days. The whole affair exposed a new storm of chaos underway within the White House, with subsequent reports suggesting that Trump hired Zacharia without input from Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and might now be looking to replace Wiles herself.
Michael Wolff is a longtime author and reporter, best known for his extensive coverage of Trump’s political career, including a handful of books about his hectic first term. In the latest episode of his Daily Beast podcast, he and co-host Joanna Coles discussed the continued fallout from Zacharia’s firing, with Wolff arguing that what happened to her ultimately was not her own fault.
“Poor Katie Zechariah. It’s not really her fault. It’s Donald Trump’s fault,” Wolff said. “He picked her out of nowhere without preparation. Was she a lawyer? Was she an attorney? What is the difference between lawyer and attorney? What are those bar exams in China like? So, no one has clearly asked those questions, because Trump said, ‘Oh, yeah, look, I like the way she looks.'”
Wolff further explained that the president’s decision to go around Wiles in hiring Zacharia was another sign that “Trump wants Trump in charge,” and “resents” the suggestion that anyone else but him is running the shop in the White House. Looked at from that angle, he also suggested that the whole ordeal makes it clear that there is a better-than-good, almost “inevitable” chance that Wiles will be the next person from the Trump administration.
“I would say it’s a pretty good chance, maybe a fair chance… and maybe inevitable that Susie Wiles goes,” Wolff said.
Wolff later dismissed Coles’ suggestion that Wiles might throw her support behind Secretary of State Marco Rubio as a 2028 presidential contender, potentially making her the first “chief of staff to two different presidents.” He also added during this exchange that a surprising member of Wiles’ family has emerged as a major force in the Trump White House.
“She’s brought her daughter into her orbit,” Wolff explained. “And her daughter has become a kind of a, you know, a power within the White House, within the Trump circle. Someone you don’t want to cross is Susie Wiles’ daughter.”
Recent reports have suggested that Katie Wiles maintains close relationships within Russia by way of her political lobbying firm, Continental Strategy.