House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., said on Sunday that President Trump’s senior adviser Stephen Miller should appear before Congress.
Nadler, appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union,” discussed how Miller is said to have come up with the idea to place illegal immigrants in sanctuary cities.
“It’s another misuse of presidential power against the law,” Nadler said. “We heard several weeks ago from whistle-blowers that Steve Miller came up with this before we heard about it from any other source.”
“Probably Steve Miller, who seems to be the boss of everybody on immigration, ought to come before Congress and explain some of these policies,” Nadler said.
When host Jake Tapper asked about the potential that Miller would claim executive privilege, Nadler acknowledged it was a possibility but argued Miller doesn’t have that right because he has overstepped the boundaries of his job description.
“It is likely [that he would claim executive privilege],” Nadler said. “But that would be a misuse of executive privilege. Because he seems to be making the decisions not the Cabinet secretaries that come and go.”
Nadler also addressed reports that Trump reportedly told Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan that he would pardon him if he was convicted of violating immigration laws, a claim Trump has dismissed.
“This just shows the president’s contempt for law, another incidence of the president’s contempt for law,” Nadler said. “ … For a president to sabotage that goal by deliberately seeking to break the law is unforgivable.”
Two days after that reported conversation, Trump and then-Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen parted ways, and he announced McAleenan would be taking over DHS as acting secretary.
