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‘This is madness!’ Stephen Miller rants about ‘cancelling Trump’ and Biden immigration policy on Fox

Mr Miller is the architect behind Donald Trump’s immigration policy

Shweta Sharma
Monday 22 February 2021 11:46 GMT
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Former Trump adviser has meltdown over Biden's immigration plan

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Donald Trump’s former senior adviser Stephen Miller went on a furious rant against the current administration for “canceling” the ex-president’s agreement with Mexico while lambasting Joe Biden’s immigration plan as “madness.”

Mr Miller, who was the architect behind Mr Trump’s immigration policy, criticised the legislation put forward by President Biden for immigration reform, which, he said, “would fundamentally erase the very essence of America's nationhood.”

He told Fox news that Mr Biden’s legislation would, for the first time in human history, propose sending applications to the previously deported illegal immigrants to give them citizenship. He said this is “unheard of.”

“This is madness!” he exclaimed.

“This on top of the fact that the current administration has already dismantled border security, cancelling president Trump's historic agreements with Mexico and with the northern triangle countries, restoring catch and release and additionally gutting interior enforcement, issuing a memo, preventing ICE from removing the vast majority of criminal illegal immigrants that it encounters!”

On Thursday, Mr Biden unveiled his ambitious immigration plan, a proposal to provide an eight-year path to citizenship for about 11 million undocumented immigrants in the US. The legislation was released by congressional democrats on Capitol Hill and seeks to ease restrictions on family-based immigration.

Mr Miller also referred to Mr Biden’s revival of “catch and release” policy by revoking Mr Trump’s controversial practice of keeping undocumented immigrants in the US to await the long immigration proceedings. Under the policy, started during Barrack Obama’s presidency, newly-arrived immigrants would be released back into US cities while awaiting immigration proceedings.

A memo sent by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Tae Johnson said last week that the agency would need pre-approval from authorities before they deport anyone at the US-Mexico border and prioritise people who pose a threat to national security.

Mr Miller raked up the issues with the memo during his interview and said it was a policy choice disguised under “resource issue”.

“That is a lie and it's a lie that threatens public safety,” he said.

Releasing illegal immigrants with criminal records back into US cities will “cost lives” and it’s a “public safety calamity” which is happening in real time now, he said.

“So ask yourself, who is going to pay for the education?” he said. “What does it mean when classrooms, God willing, reopen? What does it mean for classroom size? What does it mean for healthcare?” he asked.

Mr Miller raised the issue of giving low-skilled immigrants citizenship, underscoring that it will mean net fiscal transfer of trillions of dollars longterm to pay for social security and other medical expenses.

“It's an extraordinary expense to give that to 20 million illegal immigrants,” he said.

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