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White House Chief of Staff
The White House logo under Trump 2.0.jpg
Susie Wiles June 2025.jpg
Incumbent
Susie Wiles

since January 20, 2025
White House Office
Executive Office of the President
Reports to President of the United States
Appointer President of the United States
Formation 1946 (Assistant to the President)
1961 (White House Chief of Staff)
First holder John R. Steelman
Deputy White House Deputy Chief of Staff
P20210824AS-0004 (51644632161)
President Joe Biden walks with Chief of Staff Ron Klain along the Colonnade of the White House.
Jimmy Carter meets with Jack Watson, cabinet secretary, in the Oval Office - NARA - 176952
Chief of Staff Jack Watson (1980–1981) meets with President Jimmy Carter in the Oval Office.
George H. W. Bush on telephone
President George H. W. Bush sits at his desk in the Oval Office Study as Chief of Staff John Sununu stands nearby.
Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks into the Oval Office as President Donald Trump reads over his notes, March 2017
Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks into the Oval Office as President Donald J. Trump reads over his notes.
Barack Obama and Rahm Emanuel in the Oval Office 10-2009
President Barack Obama meets with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel in the Oval Office.

The White House chief of staff is a very important job in the United States government. This person leads the Executive Office of the President of the United States. Think of them as the President's top helper and manager.

The President chooses the chief of staff. This choice does not need approval from the Senate. The chief of staff serves as long as the President wants them to. Every president since Harry S. Truman has had a chief of staff.

As of January 20, 2025, Susie Wiles is the current chief of staff. She works for President Donald Trump in his second term. This role is seen as one of the most powerful jobs in the White House. This is because the chief of staff works closely with the President every day. They also manage the entire Executive Office of the President.

History of the Chief of Staff Role

Early Presidential Aides

In the past, the President's main helper was called the "private secretary." These secretaries were trusted friends and advisers. They handled both personal and work tasks for the President. They needed to be very skilled and keep things private. Some famous private secretaries were George B. Cortelyou for President Theodore Roosevelt. Others included Joseph Patrick Tumulty for President Woodrow Wilson. Louis McHenry Howe served President Franklin Roosevelt.

The job of managing the President's schedule was separate. This was done by an "appointments secretary."

Growing Government Needs

From 1933 to 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt made the government much bigger. This was to help the country during the Great Depression. He relied on a group of top advisers. They were sometimes called his 'Brain Trust'. These advisers worked directly for the President. But they often got paid through other government agencies. This was because the White House did not have a budget for many staff jobs.

In 1939, the White House staff started to become more organized. President Roosevelt convinced Congress to create the Executive Office of the President. This new office reported directly to the President. During World War II, Roosevelt also created a "Chief of Staff to the Commander-in-Chief" role. This was for his main military adviser, Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy.

The Modern Chief of Staff

In 1946, the U.S. government's executive branch grew even more. So, the job of "Assistant to the President of the United States" was created. This was the first step toward the modern chief of staff role. In 1953, President Dwight D. Eisenhower officially named his main assistant the "White House chief of staff."

The title "Assistant to the President" is now shared by many senior aides. This includes the chief of staff, the White House counsel (legal adviser), and the White House press secretary. At first, not all presidents used this new system. Presidents Kennedy and Johnson still relied on their appointments secretaries. It was not until the Nixon administration that the chief of staff took over managing the President's schedule.

This concentration of power led presidential candidate Jimmy Carter to promise something different. In 1976, he said he would not appoint a chief of staff. For the first two and a half years of his presidency, he did not.

How Long Chiefs of Staff Serve

On average, a White House chief of staff serves for about 18 months. John R. Steelman was the first chief of staff under President Harry S. Truman. He was Truman's only chief of staff. Kenneth O'Donnell served for all of John F. Kennedy's time in office. Andrew Card and Denis McDonough each served for a full presidential term. Card worked for President George W. Bush. McDonough worked for President Barack Obama.

What the Chief of Staff Does

Chris Whipple wrote a book called The Gatekeepers. In it, he describes the chief of staff's job. He shared a quote from former President Barack Obama:

During the last days of his presidency, Barack Obama observed: "One of the things I've learned is that the big breakthroughs are typically the result of a lot of grunt work—just a whole lot of blocking and tackling." Grunt work is what chiefs of staff do.

The chief of staff has many important duties. They manage people and give advice. Here are some of their main tasks:

  • Choosing important White House staff members.
  • Making sure the White House staff works well together.
  • Controlling who gets to meet with the President in the Oval Office.
  • Managing the information that goes to the President. They also help with decisions made at the Resolute desk.
  • Guiding and watching over all new policy ideas.
  • Protecting the President's political goals.
  • Working with leaders in Congress and other groups. This helps the President's plans become law.
  • Giving advice to the President on many different topics.

Sometimes, the chief of staff also has the power to fire senior staff members. For example, John Kelly was chief of staff for President Donald Trump. He told a staff member that his decision for her to leave was final. He said that all staff members work for him, not directly for the President.

H. R. Haldeman was President Richard Nixon's first chief of staff. He was known for being very strict. He often met with government officials instead of Nixon. Then he would tell Nixon what they discussed. Journalist Bob Woodward wrote that many people were afraid of Haldeman.

List of White House Chiefs of Staff

     Denotes acting capacity.
Image Name Start End Duration President
Steelman-Conciliation-Service (cropped).jpg Steelman, JohnJohn Steelman December 12, 1946 January 20, 1953 6 years, 39 days Truman, Harry S.Harry S. Truman
(1945–1953)
GLSAAdams (cropped).jpg Adams, ShermanSherman Adams January 20, 1953 October 7, 1958 5 years, 260 days Eisenhower, Dwight D.Dwight D. Eisenhower
(1953–1961)
Wilton Persons taking the oath of office (cropped).png Persons, WiltonWilton Persons October 7, 1958 January 20, 1961 2 years, 105 days
Kenny O'Donnell (cropped).jpg O'Donnell, KennethKenneth O'Donnell
De facto
January 20, 1961 November 22, 1963 2 years, 306 days Kennedy, John F.John F. Kennedy
(1961–1963)
Walter Jenkins 1963 (cropped).jpg Jenkins, WalterWalter Jenkins
De facto
November 22, 1963 October 14, 1964 327 days Johnson, Lyndon B.Lyndon B. Johnson
(1963–1969)
Bill Moyers clock 21 July 1965 (cropped).jpg Moyers, BillBill Moyers
De facto
October 14, 1964 July 8, 1965 267 days
Jack Valenti Portrait (cropped).jpeg Valenti, JackJack Valenti
De facto
July 8, 1965 June 1, 1966 328 days
Portrait officiel de W. Marvin Watson (cropped).jpg Watson, MarvinMarvin Watson
De facto
June 1, 1966 April 26, 1968 1 year, 330 days
James Robert Jones (cropped).jpg Jones, JamesJames Jones
De facto
April 26, 1968 January 20, 1969 269 days
H R Haldeman, 1971 portrait (cropped) 2.png Haldeman, BobBob Haldeman January 20, 1969 April 30, 1973 4 years, 100 days Nixon, RichardRichard Nixon
(1969–1974)
Vacant April 30, 1973 May 4, 1973 4 days
Alexander Haig photo portrait as White House Chief of Staff black and white (slightly cropped).jpg Haig, AlAl Haig May 4, 1973 September 21, 1974 1 year, 140 days
Ford, GeraldGerald Ford
(1974–1977)
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General George S. Brown at a press conference in the Pentagon (cropped).jpg Rumsfeld, DonaldDonald Rumsfeld September 21, 1974 November 20, 1975 1 year, 60 days
Richard Cheney with another member of the Ford administration staff at the White House (cropped).jpg Cheney, DickDick Cheney November 20, 1975 January 20, 1977 1 year, 61 days
Vacant January 20, 1977 July 18, 1979 2 years, 179 days Carter, JimmyJimmy Carter
(1977–1981)
Hamilton Jordan - NARA - 173802 (cropped).jpg Jordan, HamHam Jordan July 18, 1979 June 11, 1980 329 days
Watson 1977 (cropped).jpg Watson, JackJack Watson June 11, 1980 January 20, 1981 223 days
James Baker, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff ME671-1 (cropped).jpg Baker, JamesJames Baker January 20, 1981 February 4, 1985 4 years, 15 days Reagan, RonaldRonald Reagan
(1981–1989)
Donald Thomas Regan, Secretary of the Treasury ME352-10 (cropped) 3.jpg Regan, DonDon Regan February 4, 1985 February 27, 1987 2 years, 23 days
Howard Baker 1989 (cropped).jpg Baker, HowardHoward Baker February 27, 1987 July 1, 1988 1 year, 125 days
Kenneth Duberstein (cropped).jpg Duberstein, KenKen Duberstein July 1, 1988 January 20, 1989 203 days
GovJohnSununu1 (cropped).jpg Sununu, JohnJohn Sununu January 20, 1989 December 16, 1991 2 years, 330 days Bush, George H. W.George H. W. Bush
(1989–1993)
Samuel K. Skinner (2009-09-10) (cropped).jpg Skinner, SamuelSamuel Skinner December 16, 1991 August 23, 1992 251 days
James A. Baker III, U.S. Secretary of State (2380044355) (cropped).jpg Baker, JamesJames Baker August 23, 1992 January 20, 1993 150 days
Menem con Thomas McLarty (cropped).jpg McLarty, MackMack McLarty January 20, 1993 July 17, 1994 1 year, 178 days Clinton, BillBill Clinton
(1993–2001)
Leon Panetta, informal photo (cropped).jpg Panetta, LeonLeon Panetta July 17, 1994 January 20, 1997 2 years, 187 days
President Obama meets with Fiscal Commission co-chairs Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson (cropped).jpg Bowles, ErskineErskine Bowles January 20, 1997 October 20, 1998 1 year, 273 days
John Podesta official portrait.jpg Podesta, JohnJohn Podesta October 20, 1998 January 20, 2001 2 years, 92 days
Andrew Card Visits HUD - DPLA - 7bc5bd60c24e35fa59744b7f7736cb26 (cropped) (cropped).jpg Card, AndyAndy Card January 20, 2001 April 14, 2006 5 years, 84 days Bush, George W.George W. Bush
(2001–2009)
Assignment- 48-DPA-N OPM Pres Awards) President's Quality Awards 2005 ceremony, (honoring progress made by federal agencies in improving management systems and work processes, at Wa - DPLA - 1a5f294a5afe6060b5f7ec481aa3d2e5 (cropped).JPG Bolten, JoshJosh Bolten April 14, 2006 January 20, 2009 2 years, 281 days
Rahm Emanuel, official photo portrait color (cropped) 2.jpg Emanuel, RahmRahm Emanuel January 20, 2009 October 1, 2010 1 year, 254 days Obama, BarackBarack Obama
(2009–2017)
Pete Rouse in the Oval Office (cropped).jpg Rouse, PetePete Rouse
Acting
October 1, 2010 January 13, 2011 104 days
William M. Daley official portrait (cropped) 2.jpg Daley, BillBill Daley January 13, 2011 January 27, 2012 1 year, 14 days
Jacob Lew official portrait (cropped) 2.jpg Lew, JackJack Lew January 27, 2012 January 20, 2013 359 days
Secretary McDonough, official photo (cropped) 2.jpg McDonough, DenisDenis McDonough January 20, 2013 January 20, 2017 4 years, 0 days
Reince Priebus (32319663313) (cropped).jpg Priebus, ReinceReince Priebus January 20, 2017 July 31, 2017 192 days Trump, DonaldDonald Trump
(2017–2021)
John Kelly official Transition portrait (cropped).jpg Kelly, JohnJohn Kelly July 31, 2017 January 2, 2019 1 year, 155 days
Mick Mulvaney official photo (cropped) 3.jpg Mulvaney, MickMick Mulvaney
Acting
January 2, 2019 March 31, 2020 1 year, 89 days
Mark Meadows, Official Portrait, 113th Congress (cropped) 3.jpg Meadows, MarkMark Meadows March 31, 2020 January 20, 2021 295 days
Ron Klain, White House Chief of Staff (slightly cropped).jpg Klain, RonRon Klain January 20, 2021 February 7, 2023 2 years, 18 days Biden, JoeJoe Biden
(2021–2025)
Jeff Zients, WHCOS (cropped).jpg Zients, JeffJeff Zients February 8, 2023 January 20, 2025 1 year, 347 days
Susie Wiles June 2025.jpg Wiles, SusieSusie Wiles January 20, 2025 Incumbent 200 days Trump, DonaldDonald Trump
(2025–present)

Related Roles

See also

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