Republicans Move to Posture for the New Congress, But What is Their Angle?

It has only been four days since Democrats swept both chambers of Congress, and it seems Republicans are already posturing for their next steps. On November 6th President Trump announced Stephen Miller as his next Chief of Staff, starting November 9th. Miller is a man who has been heavily criticized by the opposition due to his aggressive stance on immigration and an overall uneasiness with his demeanor. The move is truly puzzling with not many interpretations making much sense. Hopefully this deep dive can provide some expectations for what happens next. Explaining his choice Friday, Trump said, “Stephen’s been with me since the beginning. He gets it.” [1]

President Trump’s previous Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, was the first woman to hold the position. However she was hardly the center of attention around the Trump administration's actions and the move to replace her is not unexpected. Trump has claimed that she will move on to handle his political operation [1, 2] which also makes sense as the midterms have left Republicans hemorrhaging with no exit in sight. So the premise of her moving makes the most sense out of the whole situation. But why Stephen Miller? He has drawn sharp criticism, especially from Democrats who Republicans must win over to stand a chance in 2028. While the position of Chief of Staff does not carry independent legislative authority, Miller would have the ability to practically gatekeep communication with the President. David Cohen, a University of Akron political scientist who studies the office, described the chief of staff as a “gatekeeper of the president’s time.” [1] This could be a major roadblock when it comes to the Democratic Party’s actions concerning the Iran war, which Americans are calling the end of. The AP Voter Poll found that about six in ten voters said the U.S. made the “wrong decision” in taking military action against Iran. [3]

My major concern with Stephen Miller in this position is that it may be signaling that Trump will not back down. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer’s reaction captured that concern. He said, “Donald Trump learned nothing from his historic defeat.” [1] Having an individual such as Stephen Miller in the position of Chief of Staff may mean the administration may ramp up policies that Americans have just voted against, and in the early days of a brand new congress this could mean chaos across the country. And at the end of the day that could be just what President Trump wants. By sowing in artificially created discontent within the country, Republicans may be able to point at Democrats as the sole reason. And if you think that is outlandish I would like to point at any issue the President addresses. Since 2016 Republicans have stuck the finger at Democrats for every issue concerning Americans and why would they stop now?

I implore every American to watch Stephen Miller with scrutiny in the New Year. While I do not doubt that Democrats will make mistakes leading up to the 2028 elections, allowing Republicans to throw their shortcomings onto Democrats would be the greatest gaslighting campaign in our Nation’s history.