While President Donald Trump is often seen as the architect of his administration’s deportation policies, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller is the less visible but true force shaping these initiatives. Americans should focus their attention on Miller, as he is the primary driver behind the administration’s severe agenda.
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As Trump’s longest-serving political aide, Miller is arguably the president’s closest ally. The quiet but strategic 39-year-old some say is more dangerous than he seems. In fact, political insiders say Miller is the one pulling the real strings.
Miller’s Background
Many are surprised that Miller, the man who inspired the nation’s cruel deportation crisis, was born to Jewish immigrants. Despite being raised in Santa Monica, a liberal and progressive suburb of Los Angeles, Miller was never afraid to stray from the masses.
A clip of a young Miller circulated online of him telling a crowd he was “sick and tired of being told to pick up my trash when we have plenty of janitors who are paid to do this.” The seemingly entitled sentiment was carried to his time at Duke University, where he used his “Miller Time” column to perpetuate far-right, anti-Muslim and anti-immigration views, according to the Duke Chronicle.
From there, Miller began working for Republicans in Congress, making a name for himself helping sink a bipartisan bill, which would’ve provided undocumented immigrants a path to citizenship. It wouldn’t be until 2015, however, when Miller would find a new kind of political candidate… one who would help him shine.
Trump’s Off Season
After leaving Congress to become a speech writer for Trump, Miller wrote the infamous “American carnage” speech for the president’s 2017 inauguration. Since then, the pair have been inseparable.
He became a driving force behind Trump’s Muslim ban, southern border wall and family separation plan, according to The Guardian. In 2019, he was also exposed for endorsing white nationalist publications but was never held accountable.
After their 2020 loss, Miller chose to stay close to the 45th president, unlike others like former Vice President Mike Pence. He then founded the America First Legal foundation (AFL) in 2021, targeting “woke” organizations and movements, the New York Times reported. But while Trump was planning a historic comeback, Miller was helping craft a new agenda.
AFL was initially listed as an advisory board member of Project 2025– the conservative playbook for Trump’s second term. Despite AFL later being removed from the 1,000-page book, per the Intercept, Miller still appears in a promotional video on the project’s website.
Miller’s Real Plan
During Trump’s second term, Miller has essentially gotten everything he’s wanted to fit his anti-immigrant, anti-diversity agenda. After a promotion, he’s now one of the most powerful men in the White House, often telling Trump how to run his cabinet.
Miller was behind Trump signing dozens of executive orders in January in order to “flood the zone” and scatter the courts. It was Miller who was the voice of reason during a group chat thread which would later be at the center of “Signal Gate,” NPR reported. And shockingly, Miller was the official who ordered ICE agents to target Home Depot, skipping the typical practice of honoring list of suspected undocumented citizens in his own home state, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Trump even said in a campaign meeting last year that if it was up to Miller, there would only be 100 million people living in the U.S., who would all look like him. Like James Carville and Henry Kissinger, Miller stands out as a political aide with extreme power that could upend the country in ways unimaginable.
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