OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
11:02 AM – Friday, May 8, 2026
President Donald Trump surprised White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles with a video honoring her as she received the Barbara K. Olson Woman of Valor Award.
Wiles, the first female White House chief of staff, was awarded the accolade on Thursday night at the Waldorf Astoria, where a prerecorded video, filmed from the Oval Office, was played for her.
“The woman of valor. That is Susie, come to think of it,” Trump mused in the prerecorded video. “Not only is Susie the first female chief of staff in American history, she is also one of the best White House chiefs of staff ever in history. I say the best, actually.”
“I’m tremendously grateful for her friendship, loyalty and support every single day,” he added. “She’s a real professional.”
Trump acknowledged one of Wiles’ most recent challenges: her recent breast cancer diagnosis in March. Wiles has taken zero time off as she undergoes treatment for the affliction.
“It’s been especially inspiring to see her courage and toughness in recent weeks as she’s been winning a battle with Cancer, [and] winning it decisively. It was an early diagnosis, so who’s going to be in great shape,” he assured.
Nevertheless, “Susie played a key role in every one of my campaigns, for president, but especially in 2024, when she helped lead us to perhaps the most consequential election victory in modern times,” Trump explained. “Everything we have done here in the White House has been with her help and her leadership. She’s respected by everybody; every one of these people, they respect Susie.”
Trump joked that whenever someone has a problem within the executive residence, he sends them to Wiles.
“We owe her a tremendous debt, and what she’s done is just incredible for our country,” Trump concluded. “Thank you to Susie, and congratulations.”
Wiles is one of the minds behind several successful campaigns and she has been by Trump’s side since he first announced his bid for the presidency in 2015.
Many Trump administration officials attended the Independent Women’s Foundation Gala to celebrate her, including War Secretary Pete Hegseth, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr.
When asked how she wants people to define her “impact,” Wiles, who tends to keep a low profile, joked that she hadn’t “thought about that.”
“I’m not leaving anytime soon,” she professed. “I guess I want to be known as somebody who is predictable, steady, considerate of everybody, by the people that work with me and the people that maybe oppose me or us.”
She added that despite receiving her cancer diagnosis nine weeks prior, “I come to work every day. I do my job. I don’t complain, and I think that sets an example, too, for the people I work with.”
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