Sunshine Demands Wiles Resign After Midterm Rout
Former Trump aide blames chief of staff for losing key states and potential Senate control.
By Alessia Romano ·
Caroline Sunshine, a former press assistant for President Donald Trump, publicly demanded that White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles resign following the Republican Party's decisive midterm defeat on Tuesday. Sunshine described the loss as 100% preventable and argued that Wiles must offer her resignation before the president is forced to request it.
The criticism follows a night of severe campaign setbacks for the GOP. Republican candidates lost the state of Mississippi and likely the control of the Senate for the next six years. Many of these losses fell to Trump-endorsed candidates who faced headwinds from the president's declining approval ratings, driven by high consumer prices and the ongoing conflict in Iran.
Sunshine acknowledged that Wiles helped secure the 2024 presidential victory. However, she told Jesse Watters on Fox News that Wiles' campaign expertise did not translate into effective governing. She stated that the administration took the winning strategy from 2024 and essentially handed it to the Democrats.
The former aide pointed to a loss of support among young men and minority voters who backed Trump in the previous election. She attributed this shift to staff failure in strategy and messaging. According to Sunshine, managing the staff is the primary responsibility of the chief of staff, a role she claimed was neglected.
Sunshine highlighted a specific messaging gap during the election cycle. She noted that Abdul El-Sayed appeared on her network three times, while the president's staff remained largely absent from major platforms like CNN, MS NOW, and various podcasts. She argued that the staff failed to carry the president's message to the public during a critical period.
This call for Wiles' resignation contradicts Trump's public stance from last month. At that time, Trump declared there was zero chance he was considering replacing his loyal advisor. He defended Wiles in a statement, noting she had been with him since the beginning and held his complete confidence. He also criticized Politico for reporting that Wiles' job was in danger, calling the outlet fake news.
Sunshine warned that the current political trajectory threatens the party's ability to win in 2028. She argued that if Wiles respects the president and his legacy, she should step aside to allow for a strategic reset before the next election cycle.
