'He exploded at her': Inside the 72 hours that led to Susie Wiles' ouster from Trump's Oval Office

Those were particularly rough 72 hours in Donald Trump's Oval Office, with the most powerful woman in his administration losing everything she spent years building. Susie Wiles, the 69-year-old 'ice maiden' as Trump once himself called her, was the subject of his tirade in a Thursday meeting with other aides, the British tabloid Daily Mail reported.

Trump shouted, Wiles left: What happened in the Oval Office

He berated her over the Republican rout in the US midterm polls, four sources aware of the argument told the Daily Mail. By Thursday night, Wiles resigned as the White House Head of Staff. Her replacement, one of Trump's closest and longest-serving advisers, Stephen Miller is set to take over on Monday.

"He exploded at her," a source close to the president told the tabloid. A source said that Trump yelled at Susie Wiles over the losses until she left the room. Two other sources told the Daily Mail that Trump threw Wiles out of the meeting.

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"He told her to leave," another source said. White House Deputy Chief Dan Scavino and Morgan Dewitt Snow, the de-facto head of the Presidential Personnel Office, were also present in the room.

Rattled by Trump shouting at Wiles, Dewitt-Snow didn't go back to her desk and instead went to be with Susie elsewhere in the West Wing. '

A White House official, however, begged to differ. The official said, "He (Trump) would never yell at Susie." On the election night, Trump watched the Senate fall to the Democrats from his private residence, with Wiles next to him while donors and senior White House officials were already blaming the defeat on her.

Wiles quits before Trump could reportedly sack her

According to another person, Susie Wiles was already warned that she could be on the chopping block. She went to meet Donald Trump on Thursday night and quit before he could sack her, which the mercurial US President didn't accept at the time.

Instead, Trump told her that the two would talk about it at a later time and he still didn't answer by Friday morning. Later, Wiles walked back into the Oval Office and asked the President for a transition in the run up to February.

According to two sources, Trump didn't want to wait that long and her last day was November 6. "She's tired," the White House official said. He added, "She didn't want to keep fighting."

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Was Susie Wiles preparing a last-ditch fight to survive Trump's purge?

Calling this a straight-up lie, a source close to the president said that Susie Wiles booked an offsite at Camp David on Saturday when Trump would be in Florida. She invited White House officials and her loyal aides. The agenda of this now-cancelled offsite was reportedly to work out how she could survive the week and stay in power, as per two sources.

Pete Hegseth in the firing line as Wiles looks to deflect midterm blame

After a terrible Tuesday at the polling counters, Wiles' allies burnt the midnight oil for days on end trying to make out Hegseth to be the reason for the Republican rout, especially over his role in leading the Iran war, sources said.

"Susie was trying to push out Pete" to deflect blame for the midterm loss, a senior Pentagon official told the Daily Mail. Trump's close advisors told him that Wiles' team was leaking information about Hegseth to save her skin. "I think eventually enough people talked to him that he got very upset," a source said.

A former Trump official told the tabloid, "Susie Wiles is a leaker, she's a huge f***ing leaker."

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$500 million political operation, two election losses: Why Wiles faced backlash

Besides this, Susie Wiles was allegedly running a political operation worth close to $500 million and lost both the Senate and the Congress, according to a senior Trump administration official. Around 6 weeks before the seminal election, she told people directly that Republicans would win the midterms, according to another source.

A former Trump official told the Daily Mail that he will continue celebrating Wiles' ouster through the weekend. He said, "I think we were all kind of done with the craziness, and the self-serve, the self-dealing and the corruption, which we all saw."

Why Wiles became a polarising figure inside the Trump White House

A senior Trump administration official, however, said that Wiles was a polarising figure. The official said, "The people that hate her are many of the individuals that want to just do crazy s*** and get away with it."

Wiles saw through the information that reached the President, which is what caused resentment against her. She was on Trump's side since 2016 and was his Chief of Staff since 2024. She masterminded Trump's return to the White House in 2024, with Republicans winning all 7 battleground states.

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Trump names Stephen Miller as Wiles' successor; former aide calls for wider purge

On Friday, Trump announced that Stephen Miller would step in her shoes from Monday onwards. He wrote, Susie Wiles "has done an outstanding job", adding she will be "'moving over to the Trump Political Operation." Later, Wiles confirmed in a social media post that it was her last day.

A former Trump official said that he would support Miller, provided there is a wider White House purge as the administration's problems wouldn't be solved if Wiles' allies are still there.

"It's like a weed," he said. "Pull one weed and 10 more pop up in its place."

Trump was finally moved into a screaming rage at Wiles over leaks in recent days and at Trump's own screen time. "He's perpetually online," the source said. The source added, "So my guess is he saw some things that needed to change."

Wiles warned mass deportations were costing Republicans votes; Miller's immigration stance differs

Wiles was also arguing for a less firmer immigration policy, limiting removals to people convicted of violent crimes or wanted for them. She also told Republicans that the mass deportation operation was costing the party votes.

The official rejected suggestions that Miller owed allegiance to anyone, noting that he works closely with Secretary of State and National Security Adviser Marco Rubio.

"I don't know that I would say Stephen is a Marco or a JD [Vance] guy. I think he's kind of his own man ... I don't know that he has a declared alliance, I think he's focused on serving the president."

Trump picks longtime loyalist Miller, citing his promise to help end Iran war

New Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, hardliner Bill Pulte and Ambassador to India Sergio Gor were also considered as potential replacements for Wiles.

Trump eventually chose his longest-serving aide, Miller, who has been with him since the 2016 election, citing his promise to help end the Iran war.

Trump praises Wiles as Miller takes over; aide missing as president leaves for Florida

"I think Susie's done a very good job, great job," Trump told reporters at the White House on Friday.

Asked how it felt to lose the election, Trump walked towards his helicopter to leave for Florida. Rubio, close aide Natalie Harp and Miller accompanied him, while Wiles was absent.