As Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents continue to cause chaos on the streets of Chicago, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker says he’s looking beyond Donald Trump when it comes to accountability, setting his sights on the man he argues is the mastermind behind the endeavor: Stephen Miller.
On Thursday’s “The Briefing with Jen Psaki,” Pritzker told the MSNBC host that he believes Miller, who serves as the president’s deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser, is running the show behind the scenes and is among those at the White House who are “taking advantage” of Trump’s “diminished capacity.”
“We know that he’s the one who is advising Kristi Noem” at the Department of Homeland Security, the Democrat said. “He’s the one who’s advising [White House border czar] Tom Homan. … And of course he’s the spokesperson for this entire endeavor, including about deploying National Guard into cities.”
Pritzker also said Miller “seems like a dangerous individual,” and that he’s able to wield “the power of the presidency” because Trump “isn’t reining him in.”
Pritzker said that although the Supreme Court gave Trump broad immunity for his actions while in office, that same protection does not apply to members of his administration: “They’re not always going to be in office. … The people who serve for the president, including all the way down to ICE agents, can be held accountable when there’s a change of administration.”
Pritzker also noted that even if accountability might not be imminent, he thinks it’s important for figures like Miller to know “that whatever they do now, it’s not like we’re going to forget and it’s not like we don’t have a record of what they’re doing.”
You can watch Psaki’s full interview with Pritzker in the clip at the top of the page.
