A former senior aide and ally of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has accused outgoing White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles of accepting money from corporations and foreign interests to undermine Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) agenda.
President Donald Trump announced Friday that Wiles, whom he has called the “ice queen,” would leave the powerful post on Monday and move to his political operation. Stephen Miller is set to succeed her.
While Trump and other officials praised Wiles’ tenure, former Kennedy adviser Calley Means alleged in an interview with Joe Rogan that she was involved in a pay-to-play arrangement linked to her daughter.
Means, who left the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) two weeks ago, claimed that companies willing to hire Katie Wiles as a lobbyist received favorable treatment from the White House.
Among his most serious allegations, Means said businesses that employed the daughter of Trump’s longtime chief of staff were given priority when seeking funding from the administration.
“If you’re a special interest and you want to get something done, the secret’s out. You pay Susie’s daughter,” he told Rogan, saying the arrangement had been openly discussed when one company was a client.
Means also accused Wiles of blocking MAHA initiatives because of corporate pressure and the administration’s need to raise money for upcoming elections.
“Susie said to me many times: ‘We need money for the midterms, Calley. We need money for the midterms,’” he said, alleging that she helped halt a study examining the impact of sugar on children.
A former senior aide and ally of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. accused outgoing Chief of Staff Susie Wiles of accepting corporate and foreign money to undermine Kennedy’s MAHA agenda
Former Kennedy adviser Calley Means alleged that Susie Wiles was involved in a pay-to-play arrangement connected to her daughter
“Everyone in DC convinced themselves that money is more important than voters. Again, that’s the Susie Wiles premise,” Means said.
He also claimed that Wiles told him directly: “I need the money from the sugar people to win the midterms.”
Means described Wiles, whom he called “the most powerful chief of staff in modern American history,” as the leader of a White House culture that showed contempt for the voters who returned Trump to office for a second term.
“The simple reality [of] why I left is that there is a very concentrated group of people in the Trump administration that are antagonistic to what people voted for and are, frankly—I think it’s very clear—doing things for other reasons,” he said.
“Particularly in many cases to enrich their families,” Means added.
He further alleged that Wiles was too accommodating toward the electronic-cigarette and kratom industries because of lobbying money.
“Unrelenting lobbying happened and this Susie world… huge pushing, huge, huge pushing, meetings pushing from the West Wing… to relax the standards,” he said.
The Daily Mail has contacted the White House and HHS for comment.
Trump announced Friday that “ice queen” Susie Wiles would leave the chief of staff position Monday and join his political operation, with Stephen Miller set to replace her
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Means called Wiles “the most powerful chief of staff in modern American history” and accused her of overseeing a culture that ignored Trump’s voters
Trump confirmed the leadership change earlier Friday, only days after a sweeping Democratic election victory delivered a major setback to the president and congressional Republicans.
“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“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!”
The scale of the Democrats’ victory earlier in the week could leave Republicans without control of Congress for much of the next decade, adding to pressure from conservatives for Trump to overhaul his administration.
Although the announcement came as a surprise, Our News Outlet reported in June that Wiles was quietly preparing to leave after the midterm elections. The White House denied that report at the time.
Asked about the change Friday afternoon, Trump told reporters: “I wanted to make a change. I think Susie’s done a very good job, great job, but … we gotta make moves. Sometimes in life, you have to make moves.”
That explanation differs from the account given by a senior White House official, who told Our News Outlet that Wiles “gave her resignation last night.”
President Trump praised Susie Wiles for doing an “outstanding job” as White House chief of staff and said she had “done a great job”
Trump has said the move was his decision, while the official described Wiles’ departure as voluntary, leaving conflicting accounts of how the shake-up unfolded.
Trump said Miller had “been with me from the beginning,” describing him as “very good politically” and predicting that he “will do a great job.”
“It has been the privilege of my lifetime to have served on his team from Day One, and I am honored beyond words to serve as his White House Chief of Staff,” Miller said in a statement on X. “I want to thank the incomparable Susie Wiles for her years of devoted service to the President and the Country, and for her friendship.”
“The mission now is more clear than ever: Fight with all of our soul to support our President and defend this magnificent Republic.”
Wiles published her farewell message on X shortly after Trump announced the transition.
“Today is my last day as White House Chief of Staff,” Wiles wrote Friday. “Serving President Trump in the White House has been the honor of a lifetime.”
“I’m so proud to have been a part of what we’ve accomplished together from securing our border and cutting taxes to strengthening our economy and putting America First. More than anything, I’m grateful for the extraordinary people I’ve had the privilege of working alongside.”
Her resignation follows the June report from Our News Outlet that she intended to leave after the midterm elections.
Wiles denied that report at the time, but departed only days after the election results were announced.
Wiles is the longest-serving Republican White House chief of staff and has been part of Trump’s political orbit since his 2016 campaign.
