Nov 6, 2026 · 27 min
Miller appointment signals Trump’s harder power play
MAGApocalypse Now: It’s (Stephen) Miller Time
Stephen Miller’s elevation could intensify clashes with Congress and the courts while reshaping immigration, national security, and alliances.
- 1Miles Taylor sees Miller as the administration’s leading advocate for maximizing presidential power and testing constitutional limits.
- 2The appointment may deepen conflict with a Democratic-controlled Congress and affect policy toward NATO, Ukraine, and America’s allies.
- 3Taylor argues Miller’s elevation reflects MAGA’s shrinking, self-destructive base more than a strategy to win back younger men.
Don't miss
Miles Taylor warns that Miller’s new position could empower renewed efforts to persuade Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act.
The brief
Donald Trump’s appointment of Stephen Miller as White House chief of staff signals, in Miles Taylor’s view, a more confrontational second half of the presidency—one focused on loyalty and presidential power.
Taylor describes Miller as the administration’s leading advocate for rapid executive action, resistance to courts, and an expansive reading of presidential authority, including possible use of the Insurrection Act.
Miller’s elevation could sharpen conflict with a Democratic-controlled Congress and affect immigration, national security, NATO, Ukraine, and America’s commitments to allies.
The episode’s sharpest warning is that Miller’s influence could empower future attempts to invoke the Insurrection Act, turning an expansive theory of power into policy.
Taylor rejects the idea that Miller’s promotion is a sophisticated appeal to younger men, arguing instead that it signals intensified retribution, loyalty demands, and MAGA’s destructive decline.
Weekly email
State of the Pod, every Monday
The week's most-discussed names and stories from podcasts, with the moments behind them. Free, five minutes, unsubscribe in one click.