Karoline Leavitt Confronted by Fox News Over Wiles' Revelations

The Fallout from a Controversial Interview

Karoline Leavitt, a prominent figure in the Trump administration, was seen standing behind her boss during a recent appearance on Fox News. This event took place after a controversial article published by Vanity Fair featured an extensive interview with Susie Wiles, the White House Chief of Staff. The piece, which included over a year’s worth of candid conversations between Wiles and reporter Chris Whipple, sparked immediate backlash from the administration.

Wiles, who is 68 years old, attempted to retract some of her comments shortly after the article was released. In a post on X, she described the piece as a “disingenuously framed hit piece on me and the finest President, White House staff, and Cabinet in history.” Leavitt, who is 28, echoed these sentiments during her appearance on Fox News, where she faced questions from anchor John Roberts, 69.

Roberts pointed out that there had been significant cooperation between the White House and Vanity Fair, asking, “There are numerous interviews that Susie Wiles had with the writer over the course of pretty much a year. What happened? What went wrong?” Leavitt responded by praising her superior, emphasizing that Wiles is “the best chief of staff in our nation’s history.”

Leavitt further stated that the article was an example of “fake news” and claimed that the reporter had taken Wiles’ words out of context. She added that the article omitted the positive aspects of the conversation, including the praise for the president and the inner workings of the White House. Leavitt concluded by saying that such attempts would not distract the team from their mission to “make America great again.”

The article was written by Chris Whipple, who has authored a book titled The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency. A 2017 biography notes that Whipple has interviewed 17 living chiefs of staff, none of whom have publicly refuted his reporting.

Leavitt was not the only one to defend Wiles. Former President Donald Trump also criticized the article, despite admitting he had not read it. During an interview, Wiles reportedly described Trump as having “an alcoholic’s personality,” a comment that Trump seemed to agree with during an interview with the New York Post.

“No, she meant that I’m—you see, I don’t drink alcohol,” Trump said. “So everybody knows that—but I’ve often said that if I did, I’d have a very good chance of being an alcoholic. I have said that many times about myself, I do. It’s a very possessive personality.”

Trump later praised Wiles, calling her work “fantastic.” Many of Trump’s political appointees also publicly supported Wiles, even those she had criticized in the article.

Wiles had previously criticized Attorney General Pam Bondi’s handling of the Epstein case and suggested that Vice President JD Vance’s shift from a “Never Trumper” to a MAGA loyalist was driven by political ambition. Bondi, 60, responded by stating on X, “My dear friend [Susie Wiles] fights every day to advance President Trump’s agenda – and she does so with grace, loyalty, and historic effectiveness.”

Vance also expressed support for Wiles, saying, “The President and the entire team love Susie because she is loyal and good at her job. An extremely rare combo in the halls of power.”

The White House referred the Daily Beast to Leavitt’s Fox News remarks when asked for a comment.