AILSA CHANG, HOST:
President Trump has announced that he is replacing Susie Wiles as chief of staff with Stephen Miller, who's behind some of Trump's most controversial policies.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Stephen's been with me from beginning. He gets it.
CHANG: Now, this is a major shake-up just days after Republicans' historic losses in this year's midterm elections. And it's a sign that the White House is not ready to back down from its agenda after those losses. NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben joins us now to explain. Hi, Danielle.
DANIELLE KURTZLEBEN, BYLINE: Hey there.
CHANG: OK, so what do we know so far about why Trump is even making this change? Like, do you think it has to do with the election?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, let me start with how he announced it. He announced it in the way he announces a lot of things, in a social media post. And he said Miller will take over on Monday. Now Trump also said that Wiles, who is the nation's first female White House chief of staff, that she's done an outstanding job and that she's moving to his political operation. Now, the prospect of a shake-up had come up recently, even before the midterms. There were reports that Trump was then considering replacing her. Now, today, as Trump departed the White House for Florida, he didn't have a lot in the way of explanation. He said, quote, "sometimes in life, you have to make moves." So not much there.
CHANG: OK.
KURTZLEBEN: But whatever his reasons, it sends a loud message after Tuesday of not backing down on some of their most aggressive policies.
CHANG: Yeah. OK, let's say more about that message. What should we know about Stephen Miller in this new, arguably more powerful, role?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, you could read these losses as a clear repudiation of Trump's policies, but then Miller is a true MAGA believer. I mean, he's been with the president since his 2016 campaign. He's always been considered one of the chief architects in particular of the president's hard-line immigration policies. So this seems to be the administration saying, full speed ahead. Now Miller, after all, he's known as an aggressive defender of Trump, also an aggressive mouthpiece. Here he was defending the idea of the U.S. taking over Greenland on CNN earlier this year.
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STEPHEN MILLER: The real question is, by what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland? What is the basis of their territorial claim? What is their basis of having Greenland as a colony of Denmark? The United States is the power of NATO.
KURTZLEBEN: So really pushing one of the administration's more aggressive policies there.
CHANG: Yeah.
KURTZLEBEN: And also, though, this highlights one more thing - that the new Congress may well constrain this White House, but the president does have a lot of foreign policy power, and now Miller and his foreign policy ideas will now be elevated.
CHANG: Indeed. Can you talk more about what we know about what Wiles was like? Like, how big of a change might Miller be from Wiles?
KURTZLEBEN: Well Wiles was known to be a savvy political operator. She saw her job as Trump's top aid to make recommendations, but not necessarily to tell the president no. Here she was talking about her role on the Mom View podcast.
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SUSIE WILES: We've been together a long time, and I'm so lucky every day that he trusts me to make decisions and to make recommendations. He doesn't always listen or do what I say. I don't want him to. But I'm always heard, and that's all you can ask.
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: That's right.
KURTZLEBEN: Now Miller, on the other hand, is more like someone who is going to pour rocket fuel on Trump's desires. He was an aid to Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, who became Trump's first attorney general, and Miller also has a reputation as a policy wonk willing to try new and inventive ways to expand Trump's power.
CHANG: So what's been the initial reaction to this announcement?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who's soon expected to be the new House speaker, posted this on social media. Quote, "Stephen Miller is a dangerous xenophobe and reckless extremist who has American blood on his hands. His presence in government should be eradicated like a malignant tumor. Fire him today." So that's about as direct as it gets.
CHANG: Yeah.
KURTZLEBEN: And you might remember that Trump said this week that he could maybe compromise with a Democratic Congress, and chiefs of staff often do keep relationships open with all factions. Well, the Miller pick doesn't signal that that's a priority, and the feeling seems mutual from Jeffries.
CHANG: That is NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben. Thank you, Danielle.
KURTZLEBEN: Of course. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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