Mike Lee Drops the Hammer After Trump Signals Deal on Deportations While Promoting Immigration Hawk to Top Job
Donald Trump sat down with 60 Minutes and said something about deportations that his own base never saw coming.
That same day, he handed the White House chief of staff job to Stephen Miller, the hardliner who built the mass deportation machine.
And with Democrats about to seize both chambers of Congress, the next brawl over who gets to stay in America has already started.
Trump Stood by His A Plus Border Record
The interview aired Sunday night, and CBS correspondent Ross Douthat pressed Trump on last week's midterm wipeout.
Trump didn't budge an inch on the border.
"I think I got an A+ for closing up the border," he said.
After four years of Joe Biden throwing the gates open, it's hard to argue with the grade.
"For getting people out, I get very high marks for getting the bad ones out," Trump added.
Trump Named the Group He Calls Very Dangerous
Trump sorted Americans into three camps on immigration, and he saved his sharpest words for one of them.
"Then you have a group that's a very dangerous group – the sanctuary city group," he said.
"I don't understand that group."
That's the crowd running Democrat cities that refuse to hand criminal illegal aliens over to ICE.
The other two camps, Trump said, are a bloc "on the pretty far right" that wants every illegal alien gone and a group that's "more modified."
The Workers Who Got Caught in the Net
Then came the question that set off a firestorm on the Right – had the deportation push gone too far?
"I think it might be too tough, yeah," Trump answered.
He pointed to people "that had good jobs that created one violation or breaking of the law."
Trump didn't pretend the issue was free, saying it "both helped and hurt" his party.
"I think ultimately, that hurt me," he said.
Exit polls showed Hispanic support for Republican candidates sliding about 10 percent from 2024.
Every Texas border district went for Trump two years ago, and Democrats just flipped most of them.
Trump Sketched the Deal He Thinks Democrats Can Swallow
His outline starts where it always has – the bad guys go first.
"Get the killers out, get all the rough ones out, get the drug dealers out," he said, "but let the people that are here."
Just the News reported that a deal could include some form of legal status for certain categories of illegal aliens.
When the interviewer floated landscapers and hotel workers as examples, Trump agreed.
"I think that's something that's actually doable," he said.
Asked whether he could hold off on insulting Democrats while the talks play out, Trump answered, "I could. Very easily."
Conservatives Remember What Happened in 1986
Not everyone on the Right is cheering.
"Republicans will never regain power by becoming more like Democrats. We need bold colors," U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) wrote.
Conservatives have watched this movie before.
In 1986, Washington, D.C., legalized roughly 3 million illegal aliens on the promise that the next wave would be stopped, and that promise is the reason the word amnesty still makes Republicans wince.
Democrats have also shown exactly what they do when Trump extends a hand.
In January 2018, the White House offered a path for 1.8 million young illegal aliens – more than double the roughly 800,000 covered by DACA – in exchange for $25 billion toward the wall and an end to the visa lottery.
Democrats walked away from it.
Stephen Miller Built the Machine and Now Runs the West Wing
Trump called Miller one of his "most trusted advisors" when he promoted him over Susie Wiles, who's shifting to Trump's political operation.
This is the same Miller who went on Hannity in May 2025 and set the target himself.
"Under President Trump's leadership, we are looking to set a goal of a minimum of 3,000 arrests for ICE every day," Miller said.
As of today, that man runs the White House staff, and every immigration proposal crosses his desk.
Trump drew his line on national television, then put the most aggressive enforcer in Washington, D.C., in charge of guarding it.
When the new Congress is sworn in on January 3, the sanctuary city crowd Trump called "very dangerous" will hold the gavels in both chambers.
They'll have to decide whether they want a deal or just want a fight.
Their track record says they'll pick the fight and blame Trump when the talks collapse.
And this time, Stephen Miller will be standing in the room taking notes.
Sources:
- Travis Gillmore, "Trump Says Deportation Policy 'Might Be Too Tough,' Open to Deal With Democrats," The Epoch Times, November 9, 2026.
- Just the News Staff, "Trump says his deportation policies 'might be too tough,' he's open to deal with Dems on immigration," Just the News, November 8, 2026.
- Matt Vespa, "Trump's 60 Minutes Interview Had Some Shocking Moments, Especially on This Issue," Townhall, November 9, 2026.
- Ashley J. DiMella, Peter D'Abrosca, and James Cirrone, "Trump Names Stephen Miller New White House Chief of Staff, Replacing Susie Wiles," Fox News, November 6, 2026.
- Cameron Arcand, "Trump administration sets new goal of 3,000 illegal immigrant arrests daily," Fox News, May 29, 2025.
- "White House Open to Amnesty for 1.8 Million in Exchange for Increased Security, Immigration Restrictions," The Daily Signal, January 25, 2018.
- Michelle Cordero, "History Shows Amnesty Doesn't Work," The Heritage Foundation, June 8, 2018.
