Stephen Miller is getting scorched online after attempting to spin a federal judge’s ruling on child deportations into some kind of moral crusade. But the internet wasn’t buying it — especially coming from the man who architected some of the most brutal anti-immigrant policies of the Trump administration.
On Sunday, Miller tried to paint U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan as the villain for halting the deportation of hundreds of unaccompanied Guatemalan minors. He claimed the judge was “refusing” to allow these children to be reunited with their parents.
“The minors have all self-reported that their parents are back home in Guatemala,” Miller wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “But a Democrat judge is refusing to let them reunify with their parents.”
That post lit a fuse — and the internet exploded: “Stop lying, you ghoul,” fired back Timothy Bellman, a Democrat in West Virginia.
Activist Mike Young didn’t hold back either. “Stephen Miller’s rant is pure garbage, total fake news from Trump’s anti-immigrant goon!” he wrote. “Judge Sooknanan blocks hasty deports of 700 unaccompanied kids for just two weeks to confirm safe homes, upholding laws you ignore! Your boss separated thousands in 2018, crying wolf now? We defend children from bullies like you, not exploit them.”
Immigration lawyer Aaron Reichlin-Melnick went straight for the facts.
“Stephen Miller is a liar,” he posted. “Here is a sworn declaration from one of the children saying that their mother is dead and that they left because they suffered abuse and neglect at the hands of their family, including their surviving father. The child wants to stay and seek protection.”
Kyle Cheney of Politico also weighed in, calling Miller’s argument legally hollow.
“This is devoid of factual or legal relevance,” Cheney wrote. “Lawyers for the children say some were fleeing abusive situations, and say the deportation effort was undertaken abruptly overnight and without legally required notice or protections to ensure safety. Whether their parents are in Guatemala + whether admin complied with law are distinct questions for court to resolve.”
Others went straight for the jugular:
At the heart of it, Judge Sooknanan’s ruling is a temporary block, giving time to determine whether it’s actually safe — or even legal — to deport these children. Many fled violent or abusive homes. Some are orphans. And yet, the Trump administration attempted to deport them en masse, in the dead of night, without proper legal review.
But Miller’s concern for “reunification” rang especially hollow online, given his long history of pushing the family separation policy that tore thousands of children from their parents — with no plan to ever put them back together.
Stephen Miller may think he can rewrite history with a few tweets, but the internet has a long memory — and it’s not about to let one of the main architects of Trump’s immigration crackdown pretend he suddenly cares about the welfare of migrant children.
