The recent, dramatic US military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro sent shockwaves through the international community. Yet, for many observers, the subsequent justification offered by Donald Trump's top policy aide, Stephen Miller, was even more alarming.
The 'Iron Laws' of Power: Miller's Unvarnished Worldview
Appearing on CNN with anchor Jake Tapper last week, the shaven-headed strategist dismissed diplomatic conventions with chilling clarity. Miller bluntly stated that the world is governed by 'strength', 'force', and 'power', calling these the 'iron laws' that have existed since the beginning of time. He argued that in the 'real world', such principles override international niceties.
This cold-eyed belligerence was swiftly followed by another provocative claim. As the discussion turned to the sovereign Danish territory of Greenland, Miller asserted that, as 'the power of Nato', the United States should get what it needed. He declared it 'obvious' that Greenland should be part of the United States, adding with a disconcerting smile that nobody would fight the US over it.
Any doubts that Miller was freelancing were quashed by President Trump himself. In a New York Times interview published days later, Trump confirmed his alignment with Miller, calling him a 'very strong voice' and stating he did not disagree with him on policies.
From Speechwriter to 'Trump's Brain': The Ascent of a Hardline Visionary
Stephen Miller, 40, is now widely regarded as the most influential official in the White House and perhaps the most powerful unelected figure in America. Trump has placed him 'at the top of the totem pole', and aides report the President frequently asks, 'Where's Stephen? Tell him to get that done.'
His journey to the apex of power began in Trump's first term, where he was a key architect of hardline immigration policies. These included championing the Mexican border wall, the policy of separating migrant families, and the attempted travel ban on several Muslim-majority nations.
Now, in the second term, he is acting with renewed vigour. Miller has promised to oversee the 'largest deportation operation in American history', targeting an estimated 11 million undocumented migrants. Critics allege this is a deliberate demographic shift towards a whiter America, a vision Miller is said to have harboured since his youth.
His own uncle, psychologist David Glosser, has publicly condemned him, noting their family fled anti-Jewish pogroms in Europe and would have been 'wiped out' under his nephew's policies.
Life Under Guard and a Power Couple Embraced by MAGA
The intensity of Miller's role has come at a personal cost. Due to verified death threats, he, his wife Katie, and their three children now live in protected military housing in the Washington area and are selling their $3 million home in Arlington, Virginia.
Katie Miller, 34, is a political force in her own right. A hard-Right podcaster and former Press Secretary for Mike Pence, she actively fuels the political fire. Just hours after the Venezuela raid, she posted a map of Greenland under a US flag with the caption 'SOON.' Vanity Fair once dubbed them 'Trump's favourite power couple'.
While Democrats and Hollywood liberals revile them, the MAGA movement adores the Millers. Their unapologetic stance embodies the Trumpian ethos. Senator Jim Banks has called Miller the 'smartest guy I've ever met in Washington', and others refer to him as 'Trump's brain'.
Yet, the portrayal by opponents is starkly different. He is labelled a 'creep' and a 'fascist' on posters across Washington. Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel crudely insults him, and old videos—from schoolboy rants to Star Trek costumes—are recirculated to mock him. An ally once described his demeanour as having 'the bedside manner of Heinrich Himmler'.
As the clock ticks on Trump's second term, Stephen Miller, the 'very nice guy' according to colleagues who also unleashes wrath in daily staff meetings, is cracking the whip. For his detractors, he is a dangerous radical. For his admirers, he is the unwavering force finally reshaping America according to their vision.
