In recent weeks, the White House has been shaken by an ongoing government shutdown, tumbling markets and the abrupt departure of Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis. With few allies left in the White House and a press office in disarray, President Trump has increasingly turned to Stephen Miller, one of the key architects of his hard-line immigration policies, to be the public face of his administration.
Miller had remained behind the scenes much of the last year, but earlier this month he stepped into the spotlight for a rare pair of television appearances that has left Trump allies with concerns about the state of the White House communications operation. Three of them shared their perspectives with Yahoo News.
On Dec. 16, Miller went on CBS’ “Face The Nation” to declare that Trump was “absolutely” willing to shut down the government if his demand for $5 billion to fund a border wall was not met. Four days later, Miller got into a shouting match with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer as he argued for the wall. These appearances drew shocked reactions due to Miller’s high volume, extreme positions and combative tone.
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