Stephen Miller: When The President Acts On National Security, It’s Not Illegal (VIDEOS, TWEET)

Donald Trump’s senior policy adviser, Stephen Miller, made himself look like an utter fool on ABC’s “This Week” when he ranted about voter fraud in New Hampshire–but didn’t cite even one bit of evidence to support that claim. Believe it or not, that wasn’t the worst moment for Miller on Sunday. Not by a longshot.

While making the rounds of the Sunday talk shows, Miller made one of the most chilling arguments we’ve heard yet from an administration that’s made a bushel of them in just three weeks. He claimed that the courts have virtually no authority to rule on immigration and national security matters. Apparently he was taking a cue from Pat Buchanan, who called for the GOP to use this chance to put the courts in their place.

That didn’t sit well with the gang on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” They rightly saw it as a direct attack on the independence of the courts. Hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski started taking Miller apart near the end of the first hour of Monday’s “Morning Joe.” Watch here.

It takes a lot to shock Scarborough and Brzezinski. But Miller did that in spades. At the end of the mashup of clips from Miller’s performance, both Scarborough and Brezinski found themselves saying, “Oh my God.” They’d heard bits and pieces of Miller’s railings, but they both agreed it was far worse than either of them thought. Indeed, they had made their displeasure loud and clear on Twitter on Sunday night.

Brzezinski went as far as to start a hashtag campaign to get Miller fired.

Scarborough was aghast at Miller’s suggestion on CBS’ “Face the Nation” that presidential powers on national security were “substantial and will not be questioned.” He had a message for Miller, whom be believed.

“They are questioned, my young, little Miller. They will be questioned by the court. It’s called judicial review. Alexander Hamilton and James Madison wrote about it in the Federalist Papers. It was enshrined in Madison’s Constitution.”

He called for Miller to “go back and read the Constitution,” and suggested that the White House stop trotting Miller out on television. He added that while he’d gotten a lot of calls applauding Miller, but personally thought Miller was an “embarrassment” and “the talk of a dictator.”

Brzezinski pointed out that wasn’t likely, since he had “the entire inner cadre from the top down wrapped around him.” Scarborough didn’t think it would matter, saying that “we would have impeachment proceedings within the next six months” if Trump took Miller’s advice. Moreover, he thought it was completely unnecessary, since Trump is going to put his stamp on the judiciary from the district level all the way to the Supreme Court with the appointments he makes in the coming months.

Just in case anyone thought there was going to be any letup, Brzezinski put it to rest by reminding viewers of her hashtag campaign against Miller–while the show was still on the air.

The smackdown continued during the second hour. Watch here.

To Scarborough’s ears, this sounded like something you’d hear from a spokesman for Russian strongman Vladimir Putin or Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan. To Scarborough, this was a perfect opportunity to give Miller a crash course in civics.

Scarborough reminded Miller that Andrew Jackson–one of Trump’s heroes–once said that our rights are worth nothing unless they are protected “by an independent judiciary.” As far as Scarborough is concerned, if Miller believes that the courts have no right to question the president’s authority in any realm, he is “unworthy to be in government.” He and Brzeinski openly hoped that Trump hadn’t been paying attention when he publicly patted Miller on the back.

John Heilemann of Bloomberg News said that this was the latest manifestation of the Trump White House’s mentality that “we will not be questioned” on anything. He had a warning for Trump–it is the job of the various institutions in the government and in society at large to question the president and hold him to account. Former Time managing editor and Obama administration official Rick Stengel agreed, saying that Miller’s “autocratic, authoritarian language” was going to blow up in Trump’s face.

Here’s the really frightening part. Trump says that Miller represented him very well. Does Trump actually believe that the judiciary has no right to challenge him on national security? If he does, then it’s yet more evidence that this president really does want to be a dictator.

 

Darrell is a 30-something graduate of the University of North Carolina who considers himself a journalist of the old school. An attempt to turn him into a member of the religious right in college only succeeded in turning him into the religious right's worst nightmare--a charismatic Christian who is an unapologetic liberal. His desire to stand up for those who have been scared into silence only increased when he survived an abusive three-year marriage. You may know him on Daily Kos as Christian Dem in NC. Follow him on Twitter @DarrellLucus or connect with him on Facebook. Click here to buy Darrell a Mello Yello.