With Confirmation Hearings Looming, Trump Team Orders Online Silence from All Nominees: Report
President-elect Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, has instructed all nominees requiring Senate confirmation to avoid posting on social media. This directive emphasizes that no member of the incoming administration is authorized to speak on behalf of the United States or the President-elect without prior approval from the White House counsel. While the message has been communicated before, Wiles reiterated it’s importance in a memo to the nominees, expressing her gratitude for their enthusiasm toward joining the administration.
As Trump’s more controversial nominees—such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Secretary of Health and Human Services,Tulsi Gabbard for director of National Intelligence,and Pete hegseth for Secretary of Defense—prepare for their Senate confirmation hearings,they seem to be following the guidance. Currently, the Senate has a Republican majority, which means that, despite potential Democrat opposition, nominees could still achieve confirmation if they manage to maintain support from enough GOP senators.
Wiles, who previously co-chaired Trump’s successful campaign, has made headlines as the first woman to serve as White House chief of staff. She aims to maintain a tight control over interaction from the incoming administration as it navigates the confirmation process.
President-elect Donald Trump’s chief of staff, Susie Wiles, has reportedly directed all the incoming administration’s nominees requiring Senate confirmation to refrain from posting on social media.
“While this instruction has been delivered previously, I am reiterating that no member of the incoming administration or Transition speaks for the United States or the President-elect himself,” Wiles wrote in a Sunday memo obtained by the New York Post.
“Accordingly, all intended nominees should refrain from any public social media posts without prior approval of the incoming White House counsel,” she added.
Wiles also wrote in a more upbeat tone that she appreciates “how enthusiastic everyone is” about joining the second Trump term.
🚨 NEW: All of Trump’s nominees must stop posting on social media ahead of the Senate confirmation hearings, incoming Chief of Staff Susie Wiles ordered – NYP pic.twitter.com/Rrmx42dy0x
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 30, 2024
A review of the X accounts for those who are expected to be Trump’s more controversial nominees — such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for the secretary of Health and Human Services, Tulsi Gabbard for director of National Intelligence, and Pete Hegseth for secretary of Defense — showed they appear to be heeding the order.
RFK Jr.’s most recent post — made on Friday — talked about a ski trip in Aspen, Colorado, and included a photo.
Epic day on Ajax with Finn, Aidan, Conor and race legend Bode Miller, history’s greatest Alpine skier. pic.twitter.com/8P8iPQwSTD
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) December 27, 2024
Gabbard posted a Christmas message, accompanied by a picture with her husband, on Wednesday.
As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ on this beautiful Christmas Day, we send you our aloha, gratitude and well wishes 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/IRbr5b2OIr
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) December 25, 2024
And Hegseth reposted supportive words from Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna on Thursday.
Maj. Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) lead men in combat. The personal sacrifice our war fighters face is not a concept to him. It’s a reality. His eagerness to continue literally leading from the front should not be taken lightly. He will continue to have the weight of the world on his…
— Anna Paulina Luna (@realannapaulina) December 26, 2024
Senate confirmation hearings are slated to start next week after the new Congress is sworn in.
The Republicans will hold a 53 to 47 majority over the Democrats, so even if every Democrat votes against a particular nominee, he or she can still lose three GOP senators and be confirmed with Vice President J.D. Vance casting the tie-breaking vote.
Wiles — who co-chaired Trump’s disciplined and successful presidential campaign — likely wants to run a very tight messaging ship as the new administration’s nominees work their way through the Senate confirmation process.
Trump made history in November when he announced that Wiles would be the first woman to serve as a White House chief of staff.
“Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again,” he said at the time.
Though active in Florida politics for years, Wiles was last in Washington when she worked as a campaign scheduler for former President Ronald Reagan during his 1980 presidential campaign and in Reagan’s Labor Department.
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