President Donald Trump has named longtime aide Stephen Miller as his chief of staff, a move that gives the architect of some of his toughest domestic policies one of the most powerful jobs in Washington. The appointment comes after Republicans lost control of Congress in the midterm elections held on Tuesday. Miller will replace Susie Wiles and assumes the role as the president prepares to face a Democratic-led House and Senate, along with a wave of congressional investigations into his administration.
In a social media post, Trump described Miller as "one of my most trusted advisors" and praised Wiles for doing "an outstanding job." Trump stated the change would take effect on Monday. A White House official told reporters that the appointment signals Trump has no intention of rethinking his policies and is instead rewarding his most loyal aides, stating, “He’s not changing course,” despite tens of millions of voters repudiating his domestic and foreign policies.
While Trump said this week he was willing to work with Democrats on Capitol Hill, several White House officials suggested that elevating Miller—who is known for being caustic and uncompromising—could signal a more confrontational approach and a renewed push to advance the president's agenda on immigration and other issues. Trump reportedly told a person briefed on the matter this week that the White House needed to be "more aggressive" as Democrats retake congressional power.
Miller, 41, is one of Trump's longest-serving aides, having served throughout his first and second terms. Since Trump's return to the White House in 2025, Miller served as deputy chief of staff under Wiles while wielding outsize influence over the domestic agenda. He is notably known for driving an aggressive immigration crackdown with a goal of 3,000 arrests a day, which pushed masked officers into communities to arrest people, including those with no criminal records who had lived in the country for decades. A Reuters/Ipsos poll completed early this week showed 54 per cent of respondents disapprove of the crackdown, while 36 per cent approve.
Representative Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, stated the party plans to investigate Miller's immigration policies, saying, "Stephen Miller should lawyer up." Miller was also a driving force behind the 2025 dismissal of tens of thousands of civil servants and the administration’s battles with universities and diversity programs. On foreign policy, Miller has supported deadly military strikes on boats suspected of carrying drugs in the Caribbean and Pacific, and has defended a naval blockade and sanctions against Iran.
