Stephen Miller, the architect of Donald Trump’s mass deportation policy and hardline crackdown on immigration, took up his new role as White House chief of staff on Monday.
Miller, 41, began his new role serving as Trump’s right-hand man after Republicans suffered massive losses nationwide in the midterm elections. He was previously serving as a deputy chief of staff.
On Friday, Trump announced on Truth Social that Miller – his most controversial aide – would replace Susie Wiles, his former chief of staff.
The announcement came as a surprise, because members of the Trump administration had denied reports that Wiles was on her way out. In recent weeks, several top women in the administration have stepped down, including Harmeet Dhillon, a top justice department official, and Katie Zacharia, who spent just five days as press secretary after replacing Karoline Leavitt.
Wiles, 69, was the first woman to serve as a White House chief of staff. Trump appointed her to the top White House role after Wiles co-managed his successful 2024 presidential campaign.
Trump gave her the nickname “Ice Maiden” for her calm but no-nonsense approach to managing his agenda and team. Last month, after reports he might replace Wiles, Trump declared there to be “zero chance” that would happen.
Miller’s promotion, and Wiles’ exit, came just days after voters rebuked the US president’s agenda just two years into his administration in the midterm elections.
Democrats accused Trump of not listening to voters by elevating Miller to a top role – especially because Trump’s harsh anti-immigration crackdowns rocked the nation over the last year.
Trump said himself that his mass deportation policy was “too tough” in an interview with CBS’s 60 Minutes which aired over the weekend.
“I think it was too tough,” Trump said. “I think it might be too tough, yeah. And a lot of people would say that it’s great. But a lot of people think it’s too tough.”
Despite that, Trump chose after the interview to elevate the man behind one of his most controversial policies to a larger role in the White House.
Miller has been one of Trump’s longest and most loyal supporters. During Trump’s first term, he served as an adviser for policies such as separating migrant families at the border and the Muslim travel ban.
In Trump’s second term, Miller has expanded his advisory skillset, becoming an advocate for the administration’s crackdown on anti-Charlie Kirk rhetoric, pressuring colleges and universities to comply with Trump’s anti-DEI mandates and leading strikes against suspected drug-smuggling boats.
Miller is one of the US president’s fiercest advocates, often appearing on network television to bolster the administration’s policies. Earlier this year, Miller insisted the US had the right to take Greenland, drawing rebuke from European officials.
He has faced fierce criticism for defending some of the administration’s most aggressive immigration tactics. After Alex Pretti, an American ICU nurse, was killed in Minnesota during an immigration operation, Miller called Pretti a “would-be assassin”.
More administration staffing changes could be coming soon, in the wake of the midterm results and Miller’s appointment. Richard Walters, a White House deputy chief of staff who was one of Wiles’s closest allies, announced he would also be leaving the administration.
