Means says he intended to get Wiles removed and that aides subverted Trump
Calley MeansFormer senior adviser to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., interviewed on CBS's Face the Nation
Calley Means says he wanted Susie Wiles removed and that President Trump has been subverted by people beholden to special interests, on CBS's Face the Nation, Nov. 8, 2026.
Excerpt from 0:40 to 1:08 of the CBS News video. Taken from CBS News's own video page. The CBS transcript cited for this source covers the same interview. DI added its logo in the corner.
Video: CBS News. Excerpt used for news reporting and commentary
Watch the full original video (opens in a new tab) (relevant passage: Opening exchange; Brennan asks whether Means intended to get Wiles removed)
Asked on CBS's Face the Nation whether he had intended to get Wiles removed, Means said yes and that Trump had been subverted by aides beholden to special interests. He named Wiles, Richard Walters, Walker Barrett, James Blair and pollster Tony Fabrizio, and said much of it happened without Trump's full knowledge.
“Yes. I think President Trump has been subverted by people that are beholden to special interests and not what President Trump ran on, and what voters voted for.”
Interview
Other statements by Calley Means in this case
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Where this statement fits
Former RFK Jr. adviser Calley Means alleges Susie Wiles put midterm donor money ahead of MAHA policies; James Blair calls his claims false
On November 6, 2026, Calley Means, a former senior adviser to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., said on Joe Rogan's podcast that White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and other top Trump aides held back Make America Healthy Again policies to protect money from special interests for the midterm elections. Trump political adviser James Blair called much of it false, and the White House pointed to its MAHA record. Republican Sen. Ron Johnson said the corruption Means described reached the Trump administration.
Source and context
Interview
About this source
CBS News transcript of Margaret Brennan's interview with Calley Means, a portion of which aired on Face the Nation on November 8, 2026, two days after his Joe Rogan interview and after Trump announced that Susie Wiles would be replaced as chief of staff.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Watch the clip from this source at the top of the page.
Before the quotation
Trump had announced that Stephen Miller would replace Wiles as chief of staff. Margaret Brennan asked Means whether his public allegations of corruption had been meant to get Wiles removed.
After the quotation
Asked whether his allegations were a factor in Wiles's departure, Means said he had no idea. Fabrizio said in a statement after the broadcast that Means's claim about him was false.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the allegation that Susie Wiles and other senior Trump aides held back Make America Healthy Again policies to protect donor and industry money. Means repeats the allegation and says he wanted Wiles removed over it.
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More from this case
Read the full caseWiles's spokesperson calls Means's accusations defamatory and provably false
“Calley Means' accusations are outrageous, defamatory, and provably false”Read statement
Blanche says he will not act on Means's podcast allegations and praises Wiles
“Something that someone says on a podcast? No, I do not listen to that, absolutely not. Susie Wiles did an extraordinary job, not only as chief of staff, but as a leader in working with President Trump for the past several years.”Read statement
Sen. Ron Johnson says the corruption Calley Means describes reaches the Trump administration
“You have to limit its size because as long as you have government, you're going to have the corruption that Calley Means lays out in gory detail within government, I'm sad to say within the Trump administration, okay? This is how government operates on a bipartisan basis. It's been going on for decades. It has to end.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Means says he intended to get Wiles removed and that aides subverted Trump". First published: 2026-11-12. Last updated: 2026-11-12. https://disputeindex.com/events/8639-asked-on-cbs-s-face-the-nation-whether