Donald Trump's first picks for immigration policy jobs spent the last four years angling for this moment.
Stephen Miller and Thomas Homan had critical roles in the first Trump administration and are unapologetic defenders of its policies, which included separating thousands of parents from their children at the border to deter illegal crossings. With Trump promising sweeping action in a second term on illegal immigration, the two White House advisers will bring nuts-and-bolts knowledge, lessons from previous setbacks and personal views to help him carry out his wishes.
After Trump left office in 2021, Miller became president of America First Legal, a group that joined Republican state attorneys general to derail President Joe Biden's border policies and plans. Homan, who worked decades in immigration enforcement, founded Border 911 Foundation Inc., a group that says it fights against "a border invasion" and held its inaugural gala in April at Trump's Florida estate.
Homan "knows how the machine operates," said Ronald Vitiello, a former Border Patrol chief and acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement director under Trump. "He did it as a front line, he did it as a supervisor, and he did it as the lead executive. He doesn't have anything to learn on that side of the equation."
Miller, he said, is deeply knowledgeable, has firm ideas about how the system should work, and has Trump's confidence.
