“Muslims for Just Futures (MJF) is deeply concerned by the appointment of Stephen Miller as White House Chief of Staff. Miller has actively shaped and driven the implementation of some of the most anti-immigrant and draconian policies of our time. His appointment raises profound concerns about the expansion of criminalization through the targeting of immigrant, refugee, and Muslim communities, including the use of federal institutions to target political opposition and civil society.”
Miller was a key architect of the first Trump administration’s Muslim Ban and a leading proponent of subsequent entry bans, refugee admissions reductions, and the expansion of immigration enforcement powers. He was also a central advocate of the administration’s zero tolerance immigration policy, which resulted in the separation of thousands of migrant children from their families. In the current administration, Miller has been a principal driver of mass deportation policies, aggressive Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, and the expansion of immigration raids into communities across the country. His enforcement agenda has also included supporting the deployment of the National Guard and other federal forces in domestic communities amid immigration enforcement operations.
Equally concerning is Miller’s central role in advancing National Security Presidential Memorandum-7 (NSPM-7), which has expanded the administration’s domestic counterterrorism framework in ways that threaten political dissent, movement organizations, and the broader infrastructure of civil society. An October 9, 2025 Reuters investigation, “Trump’s War on the Left: Inside the Plan to Investigate Liberal Groups”, documented Miller’s hands on role in coordinating investigations into nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, donors, and financial networks. According to Reuters, Miller reviewed financial investigations into movement organizations and nonprofits, received regular updates from federal Joint Terrorism Task Force investigators, and communicated recommendations to former Attorney General Pam Bondi, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the President and senior White House officials. A White House official identified Miller as Trump’s chief adviser on the NSPM-7 initiative.
Miller’s elevation from Deputy Chief of Staff to White House Chief of Staff carries consequences far beyond any single policy area. As Chief of Staff, he would occupy one of the most influential positions in the federal government as a key coordinator between the various executive branch leaders, with direct access to the President and substantial authority to shape the administration’s priorities, influence presidential decision making, and drive policy implementation across the executive branch.
This appointment charts a deeply concerning future. Despite millions of voters expressing demands for a different direction on immigration enforcement and government accountability, the administration is signaling its intention to deepen rather than reverse the policies of the past two years. Miller’s record clearly points to the expansion of mass deportations, militarized immigration enforcement, nationality based exclusions, NSPM-7 implementation, and the targeting of movement organizations and civil society. By placing one of the most aggressive architects of these policies at the center of White House decision-making, the administration is creating the conditions for these enforcement and counterterrorism strategies to be expanded across the full machinery of the executive branch.
