President Donald Trump admitted his mass deportation policy may have been “too tough,” just days after promoting Stephen Miller, the architect of that very agenda, to White House chief of staff.
The stark contradiction emerged in a “60 Minutes” interview following Republican midterm losses, Truthout reported.
Trump Signals Possible Shift on Deportation Policy
“I think I got an A+ for closing up the border,” he told CBS News’s Ross Douthat. “I get very high marks for getting the bad ones out. But I get hurt because we also took people that had good jobs, that created one violation, or breaking of the law, and that was that they came into the country illegally.”
When pressed directly if his deportation policy went too far, Trump replied, "I think it might be too tough." This marked a change from his administration’s rhetoric, which has consistently championed hardline measures. The president framed the backlash as a conflict between his far-right base, who “would like everybody taken out,” and the general population, which he suggested rejected his more brutal tactics.
Miller’s Elevation: The Architect of the Crackdown
Just days after the interview, Trump moved to consolidate his hardline approach by elevating Stephen Miller. The president tapped Miller, who has served as deputy chief of staff and homeland security adviser, to replace Susie Wiles as chief of staff, Newsweek reported.
Miller is not a new face in Trump’s orbit; he is widely recognized as the mastermind behind some of the administration’s most draconian immigration policies, including the family separation policy and travel bans targeting Muslim-majority countries.
Miller’s influence has only grown in the current administration. According to Newsweek, he has been a driving force behind an aggressive enforcement agenda, pushing for at least 3,000 immigration arrests a day.
He also championed the immigration provisions of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which provided roughly $170 billion for immigration enforcement and border security. His promotion to chief of staff effectively places the nation’s immigration policy under the direct control of its most zealous architect, directly contradicting Trump’s recent claims of moderation.
Miller has repeatedly supported expanding arrests and deportations since before Trump returned to the White House, Newsweek noted.
From Public Outcry to Covert Operations
The brutal visibility of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) “Operation Metro Surge” in the Twin Cities sparked widespread resistance, mass protests, and even a general strike after agents killed Minneapolis residents Renee Good and Alex Pretti. The backlash forced a tactical retreat. Trump replaced Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem with Markwayne Mullin, who promised a less visible approach to avoid public scrutiny and negative headlines.
A Contradiction Without a Clear Resolution
The central question now is whether Trump’s public regret will translate into a policy shift. Newsweek reported that while Trump has acknowledged that elements of his immigration crackdown may have hurt him politically, it remains unclear whether there will be any change in enforcement policy.
This ambiguity is compounded by his contradictory actions: admitting the policy may be too tough while simultaneously installing its chief architect in the most powerful West Wing job.
Democratic lawmakers have signaled they will investigate. Representative Robert Garcia of California, who is set to lead the House Oversight Committee, stated that Miller’s role in the administration’s immigration crackdown warrants scrutiny. The president offers olive branches to Democrats on immigration while his actions show a continuation of the hardline policies that fueled public backlash.
