Trump Picks Former Tobacco Lobbyist as Chief of Staff Amid 2024 Campaign

On Thursday, President-elect Donald Trump appointed Susie Wiles, a seasoned Republican strategist who has led Trump’s campaign efforts since 2021, as the new White House Chief of Staff. In a statement, Trump credited her with orchestrating “one of the most significant political triumphs in American history.”

However, the announcement omitted that while spearheading Trump’s 2024 campaign, Wiles also served as a lobbyist for Swisher International, a tobacco company. According to disclosure documents filed earlier this year and reported by investigative news source Sludge, Wiles was involved in influencing congressional actions concerning ‘FDA regulations.’

Although Wiles has not submitted a termination report for her lobbying activities with Swisher, records indicate she ceased lobbying for the company after it paid her firm, Mercury Public Affairs, $30,000 in fees during the first quarter of the year, as noted by Sludge.

The report also highlighted that Mercury Public Affairs, where Wiles serves as a co-chair, holds substantial lobbying contracts with numerous junk food manufacturers aiming to counteract Trump’s health initiative to “Make America Healthy Again,” which includes efforts to eliminate processed foods from school menus.

Mercury’s client roster includes major food industry players such as Kellogg’s, Kraft-Heinz, and Nestlé SA, which owns brands like KitKat, Hot Pockets, and Nestea, according to Sludge.

Other notable clients of Mercury, listed on its website, are Gilead Sciences, Pfizer, Tesla, Uber, Kaiser Permanente, AT&T, NBC Universal, Gavi: The Vaccine Alliance, and the country of Qatar.

Kieran Mahoney, CEO of Mercury, praised Wiles’ appointment as Chief of Staff, stating it was “excellent news for the nation” and described her as “a valued colleague.”

Despite Trump’s campaign rhetoric portraying himself as a champion of the working class and an opponent of endemic corruption in Washington, D.C., his Cabinet is anticipated to be filled with billionaires and individuals with profound corporate connections.

Howard Lutnick and Linda McMahon, both billionaires, are leading the transition team responsible for staffing the upcoming administration. Politico reported that Lutnick, who donated over $10 million to Trump’s campaign, has been accused by some Trump insiders of improperly intertwining his business interests with his role in assembling a potential administration.

Concerns about Lutnick’s potential conflicts of interest include his company Cantor Fitzgerald’s ties to Tether, a controversial cryptocurrency firm that is reportedly under federal investigation, as noted by the publication.

Recent reports suggest that the top candidates for the Treasury Department in Trump’s second term are billionaires Scott Bessent, a hedge fund manager and massive donor to Trump, and John Paulson, an advocate for tax cuts and deregulation on a large scale.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla who contributed more than $118 million to support Trump’s re-election, is also expected to significantly influence the administration. Axios reported that Musk is involved in staffing senior positions in the White House and will lead an unregulated body designed to recommend government cuts and restructuring.

This arrangement is seen as creating conflicts of interest of monumental proportions. However, it appears unlikely that the Trump White House will concern itself with these issues, or that Musk will let it impede his efforts.

The consumer advocacy group Public Citizen recently pointed out that at least three of Musk’s enterprises—Tesla, X, and SpaceX—are under investigation by various federal agencies for alleged wrongdoing.

The group mentioned that “enforcement priorities can shift significantly with changes in administration,” implying that Musk’s increasing political involvement is likely driven by his desire to influence the investigations into his businesses.