Stephen Miller reportedly managed to slash the refugee cap by sneaking it past certain Trump officials

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 21 September 2018

It's easy to win a battle when your opponent isn't in the room.

That was reportedly senior adviser Stephen Miller's strategy for convincing President Trump to cap refugee admissions at 30,000 in 2019. Miller pushed for the record-low limit in a meeting with top Trump administration officials, NBC News reported Friday — but didn't invite colleagues who he thought might make his job more difficult.

Miller reportedly left U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Defense Secretary James Mattis, and other officials out of the meeting. The ones who weren't invited, curiously, were officials who have consistently voiced opposition to further lowering the refugee admission ceiling. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the change Monday, not commenting on whether he had had a change of heart since his previous preference for a higher cap. Sources told NBC News that Pompeo eventually bent to Miller's will. "Pompeo got rolled," said one former official.

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Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.

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