White House adviser Stephen Miller’s wife has publicly celebrated a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that will strip Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, from hundreds of thousands of Haitian and Syrian migrants, reviving a controversial debate claim made by Donald Trump.
Katie Miller posted a video clip on social media of Trump from the September 2024 presidential debate during which the president made a baseless claim regarding Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio.
“Great news for the dogs and cats of Springfield,” Miller wrote to accompany the clip.
The social media post followed a 6-3 Supreme Court decision on Thursday along ideological lines, in which the conservative majority ruled that the executive branch has the unreviewable authority to terminate TPS designations.
The ruling effectively ends deportation protections and work authorization for approximately 350,000 Haitians and 6,100 Syrians who had been living legally in the United States as refugees.
open image in galleryThe high court rejected arguments brought by TPS holders that the administration’s attempt to end the program was rooted in racial prejudice. Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel Alito stated that the claims were insufficient to prove the termination was based on race.
In her dissent, Justice Elena Kagan quoted heavily from past statements made by Trump regarding Haitian migrants to argue that racial hostility did play a role.
open image in galleryMiller, 34, defended the administration’s actions and criticized the long legal battle required to lift lower court injunctions that had previously protected the migrants.
“President Trump has tried to end TPS for Haiti since November 2017,” Miller wrote on Thursday. “TPS was blocked by a lower court in 2018 until time ran out, and it was restarted by President Biden. Our supposedly nonpartisan judicial system blocked a legitimate executive branch authority.”
She added: “It has taken eight years and seven months for the Supreme Court to right the wrong of the activist judges. When courts block the will of the people, we no longer live in a democracy.”
A day before the ruling, Miller posted that “Immigration is THE issue of our time.”
The visual shared by Miller dates back to a widely watched moment in the September 2024 presidential debate, during which Trump amplified a viral, unverified right-wing internet rumor regarding the local migrant community in Ohio.
“They’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats,” Trump said during the broadcast. “They’re eating the pets of the people that live there.”
Local officials in Springfield repeatedly stated at the time that there was no evidence to substantiate the claims.
open image in galleryFollowing the court’s decision, Stephen Miller addressed reporters, confirming that the administration considers the country closed to new asylum seekers and expects current TPS holders from Haiti to return home.
“America’s doors are fully closed to asylum seekers,” Miller said, noting that the administration has established third-party country agreements to hold individuals while claims are processed.
He characterized border asylum applications as “fake” and denied that applicants face legitimate persecution.
“In every case, they’re either criminals, benefit seekers, economic migrants, welfare seekers, etc. etc. They’re coming to join family members and so forth,” Miller said. “But the good news for them is that in other countries willing to take them.”
Miller further alleged that all undocumented immigrants are smuggled by cartels and forced into exploitative debt arrangements.
“The profits that they earn from that, even smuggling, goes into kidnaping, torture, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, fentanyl,” Miller said. “You know that when you do it and it’s a sinful thing.”
Miller praised Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and referenced recent executive actions, including a measure blocking undocumented immigrants from holding U.S. bank accounts.
Despite an active “do not travel” advisory from the State Department due to high rates of kidnapping and civil unrest in Haiti, Miller maintained that the country is safe for return, comparing its crime rates to specific metropolitan areas in the United States.
“Haitians live in Haiti,” Miller said. “It’s not our position that Haitians should leave Haiti. It’d be crazy for us to say that Haitians shouldn’t live in Haiti, it’s their country.”