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Keith Schiller was Donald Trump bodyguard and until September 2017 the White House Chief of Security. A longtime member of Trump’s personal security team, Schiller left the White House about two months after John Kelly succeeded Reince Priebus as White House chief of staff. Though Schiller’s departure was not characterized as a firing, his exit was viewed as symptomatic of changing priorities within the Trump administration after changes in its leadership.
As chief of security, Schiller’s position was instrumental in ensuring the president and the White House complex were out of harm’s way. However, all that started to change with the arrival of John Kelly, who began to bring a number of changes into the White House organization. Kelly was a retired Marine general who tried to impose some order and discipline on the administration, making several changes that impacted many senior officials, including Schiller.
According to the reports, he decided to leave the White House for a combination of reasons: he had been with Trump for many years, actually joining him as a security officer back in the days of the Trump Organization, growing close to him, but the new regime under Kelly reportedly did not suit Schiller’s approach to the job. For that decision to leave, Schiller himself described the decision as very personal, adding that he was ready to go after serving the president a long period.
The exit of Keith Schiller, though without controversial or sudden firing, underlined the far-reaching restructuring of the White House under John Kelly. He later joined the private sector to continue his security and consulting career.
Keith Schiller, the chief of security for President Donald Trump, had one of the most critical jobs in the White House. A close confidant to Trump, Schiller was in charge of keeping both the president and the White House safe. In September 2017, Schiller announced that he was leaving his post, raising questions over whether he had been fired.
The nature of his departure had been subject to speculation, but Schiller’s exit was not framed as a firing. Instead, it was part of a broader shift in the White House following John Kelly’s appointment as chief of staff. Kelly, who imposed a new level of structure and discipline on the administration, made changes that affected several staff members, including Schiller.
Later, Schiller made clear that it had been his decision to leave, and that no conflict lay at the root of it. Feeling that he’d spent so long serving under Trump, it was now time for Schiller to try other opportunities and experiences. Never expected, but indeed his own step down from the post he occupied for so long.
Who is Keith Schiller?
Schiller worked with the business magnate since 1999 and was usually the one closest to Trump, and in 2004, became Trump’s director of security. He worked as the director of Oval Office operations before becoming Trump’s aide, until his resignation last September. While in the White House, he stood directly outside the Oval Office doors.
A former NYPD officer, Schiller reportedly made around $165,000 while at the White House, but reportedly made as much as $294,000 per year while with the Trump Organization.
Why Did Trump’s Aide Leave His Job?
According to reports, Schiller was unhappy about his lessened access to the President after White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly implemented the changes, saying that Trump’s bodyguard had to ask permission to see the president.
Schiller reportedly told his friends that he began disliking his job at the White House, despite earlier hopes that he would be kept on for at least a year.
When First Lady Melania Trump and their son Baron were in New York when Trump first moved into the White House, Schiller is said to have been his source of emotional support.
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Where is Keith Schiller Now?
After reports of Schiller “not being comfortable working under Kelly” surfaced before his September departure, an old issue of his arose in the media the following November.
Schiller testified that he refused a Russian offer to send five women to Trump’s hotel room during the 2013 Miss Universe Pageant. He said that it was accepted “as a joke,” after which he and his employer laughed the request off.
Despite leaving the White House on September 20, 2017, it was reported that Schiller would return to private security after leaving the Trump Organization.
