How Stephen Miller Schemed His Way to the Top

President Donald Trump on Friday announced that Stephen Miller, one of his most powerful and politically aggressive aides, would be his next White House chief of staff following disastrous results for Republicans in the midterm elections.

Miller, whose titles until now were deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser, has orchestrated the most polarizing policies of Trump's second term—most notably a brutal crackdown on immigration that has claimed the lives of US citizens.

Trump made the change public in a statement on his Truth Social platform, writing that Miller would take over from Susie Wiles on Monday—less than a week after Republicans lost the House and Senate in a searing rebuke of Trump's policy agenda.

In recent days, Trump has privately blamed Wiles for the worst Republican midterm performance in decades, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Wiles submitted her resignation on Thursday, the sources say.

Trump broadly considered three candidates to replace Wiles, the sources say: special envoy Steve Witkoff, director of national intelligence Jay Clayton, and Miller.

But with the looming threat of congressional investigations starting next year, Trump settled on Miller, seemingly because of his zeal in defending the president and his deep loyalty. Miller has been with Trump since his first campaign and stood by him through his political exile in 2021.

Miller had made his interest for the job known inside the West Wing for weeks, ever since Wiles weathered a series of negative stories before the midterms that suggested her job was at risk, the sources say.

In recent months, Trump also started cutting Wiles out of certain decisions, which contributed to the sense among her detractors that she was on shaky ground, sources say. For instance, Trump reportedly hired Katie Zacharia as press secretary without consulting Wiles, though the White House pushed back on the claim.

With Wiles' departure, White House aides were bracing for further personnel changes. Among other names, Wiles' deputies James Blair, who put together the GOP midterm strategy, and Richard Walters are seen as vulnerable to being fired by Miller unless they resign first, sources say.

The changing of the guard also is likely to bring respite to defense secretary Pete Hegseth, who has had a strained relationship with Wiles as of late but is seen as ideologically aligned with Miller, sources say.

Hegseth and Miller worked closely last year when the Trump administration began a campaign of strikes against boats around Venezuela. Miller, who also leads the Homeland Security Council within the White House, orchestrated the campaign through the Pentagon.

Wiles leaves the White House as arguably the most successful chief of staff to Trump, who infamously cycled through chiefs in his first term. By comparison, Wiles kept Trump's confidence from the start of his second presidential campaign in 2021.

Still, Wiles weathered a number of challenges in recent months. She underwent a successful course of chemotherapy, but also faced accusations that her daughter had received lucrative contracts in part because of the family's connection to the president. (The White House and Wiles' daughter's firm pushed back on these claims.)