White House memo gives Cabinet secretaries greater control over communications under new chief of staff
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A memorandum issued after Stephen Miller became chief of staff outlines a restructuring that shifts messaging authority from the White House to individual Cabinet leaders.
A memo circulated within the White House this week details a reorganization of the Cabinet communications hierarchy after Stephen Miller assumed the chief-of-staff role on Monday. The document, titled as a memo on administrative matters and personnel changes, states that the position of Cabinet Secretary will be renamed Director of Cabinet Relations and will focus on supporting the President's Cabinet secretaries.
According to a source familiar with the memo, the change is intended to allow each Cabinet leader to manage messaging for their department and to reduce previous centralized oversight. The source said the new arrangement should enable the Cabinet to “deliver swift, critical, and lasting wins for the American people.”
Another source familiar with day-to-day operations said the shift reflects a move away from the communications control that former chief of staff Susie Wiles reportedly exercised during the first two years of President Donald Trump's second term. The source added that the policy change “recognizes you can’t effectively micromanage an organization of this size” and that it “trusts and invests in a support system that elevates the people who are closest to the issues.”
A former administration official described Wiles’s prior approach as seeking “complete authority” and warned that Cabinet secretaries faced pressure to stay on script, with potential media repercussions for deviations.
The memo also notes other structural adjustments, including that the director of presidential scheduling and the Office of Presidential Scheduling will report directly to Chamberlain Harris, deputy director of outer oval operations, and that Caleb Orr will become chief of staff for policy. It outlines a policy process that will be overseen by the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and the National Security Advisor, with clearly defined responsibilities and no overlapping portfolios.
Wiles did not respond to a request for comment.