Trump names Stephen Miller White House chief of staff after Republican midterm losses

US President Donald Trump has named longtime adviser Stephen Miller as his new White House chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles in a shake-up days after Republicans lost control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections.

US President Donald Trump has named longtime adviser Stephen Miller as his new White House chief of staff, replacing Susie Wiles in a shake-up days after Republicans lost control of both chambers of Congress in the midterm elections.

Trump announced the appointment on Friday, November 6, saying Miller would take up the post on Monday, November 9. He described the 41-year-old as “one of my most trusted advisors”.

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Miller, a key architect of Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, has been among the president’s closest advisers since joining his 2016 election campaign as a speechwriter. He most recently served as deputy chief of staff for policy and also held the role of White House homeland security adviser.

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The appointment suggests Trump intends to maintain his hard-line policy agenda as he prepares to face a Democratic-controlled Congress. Democrats have said they plan to investigate the administration, with Miller himself among the potential targets.

Trump denied that the personnel change was a response to the Republican Party’s election losses.

“Not because of the election. It’s just time,” he told reporters on Friday. “Sometimes you change. The election wasn’t my election. I wasn’t on the ballot.”

Speaking as he departed the White House for Florida, Trump praised Miller’s political instincts and management skills.

“Stephen’s been with me from the beginning. He gets it,” Trump said. “Very good politically and he’s a very good man. He’ll do a great job. Great manager.”

Miller joined Trump’s political circle during the 2016 presidential campaign, helping shape his speeches and political messaging. Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon told The Associated Press in 2017: “I think he helped Trump find his voice.”

During Trump’s first term, Miller played a central role in developing the administration’s restrictive immigration policies, including travel restrictions affecting several Muslim-majority countries and the policy that led to the separation of migrant children from their parents at the US-Mexico border.

He was also a leading advocate of the administration’s 2018 “zero tolerance” approach, under which adults who crossed the border without authorisation were referred for criminal prosecution. The policy resulted in widespread family separations.

The appointment drew criticism from Democrats. Representative Robert Garcia, who is set to chair the House Oversight Committee, said Miller was an architect of the administration’s immigration enforcement policies and warned that he could face congressional scrutiny.

Miller welcomed the appointment in a post on X, saying he was “honored beyond words” to serve as Trump’s chief of staff.

Wiles, who became the first woman to serve as White House chief of staff, said in a social media post that serving in the role had been “the honor of a lifetime”. Trump said she would continue working with his political organisation.