Thom Tillis, the Republican senator from North Carolina, said Sunday that Donald Trump should remove longtime adviser Stephen Miller from the administration, calling him an “embarrassment” and a “big problem” for the White House.
Tillis made the remarks during an appearance on State of the Union on CNN, where he spoke with host Jake Tapper about tensions within the administration following the recent departure of Kristi Noem as secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
“It gives me pause that you have people like Stephen Miller calling the shots,” Tillis said. “It was Stephen Miller that was talking about a terrorist brandishing a gun. It was Stephen Miller who said it was the position of the United States that we should go after Greenland. It was Stephen Miller who has been repeatedly responsible for embarrassment for the President of the United States by acting too quickly. Speaking first and thinking later.”
When asked directly whether he believes Miller should be fired, Tillis responded bluntly: “Oh, of course I do.”
The senator argued that Miller exerts excessive influence over the administration and the work of cabinet officials.
“He’s not worried about substance. He’s more worried about form,” Tillis said. “But I also think that he has an outsized influence over the operations of the Cabinet. And I believe we’ve got qualified Cabinet members there that sometimes are doing less than what they want to because of his direction and his outsized influence.”
“He’s a big problem in this administration, he has been from the beginning,” he added.
Tillis, who has announced he will not seek reelection, has previously criticized the administration’s immigration enforcement strategy and the officials responsible for shaping it. Miller is widely regarded as the architect of some of the administration’s toughest immigration policies.
Tillis specifically pointed to Miller’s public rhetoric surrounding immigration enforcement and incidents such as the shooting death of Alex Pretti, suggesting the adviser’s comments have created political liabilities for the administration even as Republicans broadly support stronger border security.
Miller remains one of Trump’s most influential advisers and retains strong backing from many Republicans.
Lindsey Graham, the Republican senator from South Carolina, previously led more than a dozen GOP senators in defending Miller and the role he has played in advancing the administration’s priorities.
“People can disagree with Stephen on rhetoric, and they can disagree with him on policy, but the question is, ‘Is Stephen Miller in jeopardy in Trump World?’ Absolutely not,” Graham said.
Other Republicans have similarly praised Miller’s work. Dave McCormick, the Republican senator from Pennsylvania, credited Miller and members of Trump’s team with helping advance policies focused on combating fentanyl trafficking, expanding domestic energy production and supporting economic initiatives.
The public criticism from Tillis highlights divisions within Republican ranks over both the tone and tactics used by some of the administration’s most prominent voices.
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