Another one bites the dust within the Trump administration.
Photo illustration by Elizabeth Brockway/The Daily Beast/Getty
The elevation of Stephen Miller to White House chief of staff has already led to a major departure from MAGA.
On Friday, President Donald Trump, 80, announced that the controversial Miller, 41, would replace his longtime chief of staff, Susie Wiles, 69, who was joining his political operations.
Today, one of Wiles’ longtime allies announced he was leaving the administration, before Miller took over. Miller has drawn criticism for his uncompromising views and is the architect of Trump’s brutal policy of mass deportations.
Susie Wiles has left her post as White House chief of staff and will be replaced by her former deputy, Stephen Miller.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Richard Walters tendered his resignation as White House deputy chief of staff on Friday, the same day Miller’s promotion was announced, according to Axios. The publication noted that Walters was one of Wiles’ closest allies and that they had worked together for more than a decade.
A person close to the departure said his departure was amicable, Axios noted.
“Serving President Trump has been the honor of my life and I will always be grateful to Susie Wiles for this opportunity,” he told the publication in a statement.
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He added: “Stephen is building an incredible and capable team to implement the President’s agenda and I look forward to being a part of it from the outside.” »
Richard Walters, seated, lower left, at a White House technical dinner with his ally Susie Wiles.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan and White House staffer Richard Walters in September.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Walters had held the position since May and is a veteran Republican who previously worked as executive director of Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance’s inaugural committee.
He is the longest-serving chief of staff in the history of the Republican National Committee, according to Axios, and played a key role in all three of Trump’s presidential campaigns.
Miller put a positive spin on the outing, saying Walters had been “an invaluable member” of the White House.
“While he leaves us, Richard will continue to assist us from the outside as we continue to work with all our might to meet the expectations of President Trump and his courageous fight to save America,” Miller said in a statement to Fox News.
It’s the first major move since Miller’s promotion, which comes after the Republican Party’s disastrous performance in the midterm elections, where it lost control of the House and Senate to Democrats.
Miller’s promotion also led to another departure from MAGA: his wife Katie announced that she would stop recording his podcast.
The Katie Miller Show launched in August last year. However, she struggled to find an audience for her softball interviews. His only episode to surpass a million views on YouTube was an awkward conversation with his former boss Elon Musk. Most episodes have had fewer than 20,000 views.
Katie Miller and Stephen Miller at the 2026 White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.
Kristina Bumphrey/Variety via Getty Images
“With @StephenM taking on this new role for President Trump, I have decided to stop recording new podcast episodes,” Katie said in an article on X.
“Nothing is more important than raising our four children. While I loved the podcast, the time commitment is too much and now it’s time to step away. I will be cheering on President Trump and his team from outside the administration,” she added.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.
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