A new chapter starts today in the White House as hard-liner Stephen Miller takes over as President Trump's chief of staff in the aftermath of the GOP's sweeping midterm losses.
Having served as the deputy chief of staff for policy, Miller has arguably been a driving force behind strict immigration enforcement policies, including the deadly crackdown in Minneapolis earlier this year.
Now, he's taking over for the much less vocal Susie Wiles, who seemed comfortable working as a behind-the-scenes operator for the past two years. Miller's appointment has been widely perceived as a message that the White House is preparing for combat with the incoming Democratic majorities in Congress.
However, Trump said he's hoping to be able to work with Democrats during a sit-down interview with CBS's "60 Minutes" that aired Sunday. One of the key areas he pointed to was immigration — the issue that Miller has for years known to be a hard-liner on.
Trump said he believes his administration's deportation policy was "too tough." He noted the argument that those who entered the country illegally who have jobs and are paying taxes should be allowed to stay in the U.S. in some form.
"The deal would be we would work something out, and I think that's something that's actually doable," Trump said.
Following the GOP's losses last Tuesday, Trump surprised some with a congratulatory message to Democrats, saying he looks forward to working together "for the good of our country."
But The Hill's Julia Manchester reports many political observers see Miller's promotion as a clear signal that Trump has no intention of backing down.
“They are not going to slow down on executive power, executive orders, and regulations,” Joe Grogan, the former director of Trump’s Domestic Policy Council in his first administration, told Manchester. “Stephen is going to move aggressively on all of that.”
Democrats have widely slammed Miller's promotion, saying it undermines the possibility of working together with the president.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (N.Y.) said Friday in a post on the social platform X that Miller becoming the chief of staff shows Trump has "learned nothing from his historic defeat."
“Stephen Miller is the architect of the most barbaric, inhumane policies of this administration. Trump couldn’t have made a worse choice,” Schumer said. “Our Democratic majorities will fight him every step of the way.”
Michigan Sen.-elect Abdul El-Sayed (D) called Miller the "most broken man."
"I don't know what Stephen Miller has actually contributed to our culture, our society, in any real way, except to make us more angry and stoke the worst kind of fear and vitriol," he said Sunday on ABC's "This Week."
Even some Republicans expressed concern about Miller.
Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) called Miller's promotion a "bad mistake" during an interview Sunday with CNN's Manu Raju.
"If your team takes a beating as badly as we took this last week, you have to fire people. You don’t promote those who are, who were in charge of what was supposed to be delivered," he said, adding that Midwesterners don't like his "tone."
Wiles, who was the first-ever female White House chief of staff, is one of the first in what is likely to be a growing list of administration figures exiting after the bruising midterms.
Deputy chief of staff Richard Walters, a close ally of Wiles, is also leaving the administration.
▪ The Hill: Bernie Sanders ‘not worried’ about Miller.
▪ The Hill: Katie Miller pauses podcast after husband’s promotion.
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