A newly leaked White House memo attributed to incoming Chief of Staff Stephen Miller appears to signal a significant change in how President Donald Trump’s Cabinet communicates, giving department heads greater freedom to speak for themselves.
Fox News Digital reported Thursday that the document was distributed this week, shortly after Miller officially replaced Susie Wiles as the White House’s top aide on Monday.
Wiles was regarded as a demanding gatekeeper, while Miller’s approach appears aimed at giving Cabinet officials more independence and allowing them to act as ‘captains of their own ship,’ one source told Fox.
A second source said the change would make the Cabinet a more efficient extension of the President, arguing that it had previously been held back by excessive restrictions.
The White House position currently called Cabinet Secretary is not held by a Cabinet department secretary. Instead, it belongs to an aide responsible for coordinating communication between the President and Cabinet officials. Under the new structure, the post will be renamed Director of Cabinet Relations.
Meghan Bauer has occupied the role since November, but is expected to depart before the end of the year as part of a broader reshuffling following the midterm elections.
The White House has not yet announced who will succeed her.
According to Fox, the memo said the revamped position would concentrate on supporting and strengthening President Trump’s ‘tremendous Cabinet Secretaries.’
Incoming White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller waves to reporters on the South Lawn on Friday, when his appointment was announced. His memo indicates that Cabinet officials may receive greater latitude in shaping their own public communications
The document added that each Cabinet chief is best positioned to lead and speak for their own department, while the newly titled director would ensure the White House provides the staff and resources needed to deliver ‘swift, critical, and lasting wins for the American people.’
The first source described the memo as evidence of a broader communications reset, saying Wiles had maintained tight control over much of the administration’s public messaging.
‘To me, it reflects well on Miller and his team,’ the source told Fox, describing the decision to spell out the changes as a smart move designed to improve clarity and effectiveness.
The source said the policy recognized that no one person could successfully micromanage such a sprawling organization. Instead, the administration may be seeking to empower officials who are closest to individual policy areas while building a support network around them.
A former administration official offered a far harsher assessment of Wiles’ tenure, describing her management style as overly restrictive.
The former official claimed Wiles sought ‘complete authority’ through what they characterized as pressure and intimidation.
‘She has been very clear: “I can’t control [Trump]. I can control everything else,”‘ the official told the network.
The official also alleged that Wiles warned Cabinet secretaries that if they strayed from the approved message in media appearances, they could be held responsible for Republican losses in the midterm elections.
Former White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles is pictured in the Oval Office in December. President Donald Trump announced her departure on Friday, and Stephen Miller formally assumed the role on Monday
President Donald Trump leads a Cabinet meeting at the White House in May. Miller’s memo suggests department heads and agencies could be given more authority to communicate directly with the public
Still, the administration has already seen the risks that can come with giving Cabinet officials broad freedom, including during the tenure of former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Before she was dismissed in May, Noem spent $220 million in taxpayer funds on an advertising campaign that featured her as its central figure.
Another example came in February 2025, when Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reportedly clashed in the Situation Room, according to Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan’s book Regime Change.
Our News Outlet also reported in April that Bessent and Lutnick had a tense confrontation at the private Ned’s Club in April 2025.
Representatives for both Cabinet secretaries denied that a verbal confrontation had occurred.
