Susie Wiles' warning mail to White House staff on leaks gets leaked
An email shared by White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, instructing members of the administration to stop leaking information to the press, was itself leaked in a case of sheer irony. In the memo, obtained by Politico, Wiles strictly ordered that no member of the "Executive Office of the President is permitted to speak with members of the news media," and that any unauthorised leaks could lead to "sanction" up to "termination".
The directive was a clear crackdown on leaks that might interfere with official White House messaging, as, according to Politico, the West Wing has been reportedly frustrated with staff members leaking information on disputes or decision-making battles to the press. “Violation of this policy can result in significant disruption to ongoing operations and can potentially endanger missions and activities of national significance,” Wiles wrote in the email, adding that unauthorized leaks could lead to termination or sanctions.
“She was generally very frustrated with leaks,” a person with knowledge of the matter told Politico's West Wing Playbook, adding that the directive isn't forced by any one specific leak. As per the publication, the policy change comes as part of a series of moves to rein in internal freelancing across the White House. Wiles had previously instructed Cabinet officials in private to avoid unnecessary international travel and remain focused on implementing Trump’s domestic agenda in the U.S.
Trump's first administration was plagued with information of power struggles spilling into the press, but in his second administration, Wiles has spent significant time trying to build a more centralized operation where messaging flows only through the senior leadership. “There are hundreds of White House staffers faithfully serving the American people, all of whom are held to strict policies - including a zero-tolerance policy against speaking to the media without explicit authorization from the Communications Office - to ensure the President’s message is communicated clearly, accurately, and directly to the American people,” White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in a statement. However, Wiles quickly became the subject of ridicule after the very memo warning against leaks was leaked.
Despite the memo being sent in March, the very next month, crucial information on the missing pilot who was shot down in Iran was leaked to the press. Following the successful rescue of the pilots on Easter Sunday, a White House official told Fox News that an investigation was "underway" to determine who leaked to the press that one of the pilots was missing after their jet was shot down in Iran on Good Friday.
Further, at a press conference on the successful rescue mission, Trump announced his administration was working "very hard" to find the leak, which he claimed put the missing pilot at greater risk, as the pilot was reportedly hiding from Iranian forces while waiting for help to arrive. "We think we'll be able to find it out because we're going to go to the media company that released it, and we're going to say, 'National security, give it up or go to jail,'" Trump said.
