Sen. Bernie Sanders said Sunday he is “not worried” about Stephen Miller becoming White House chief of staff, and suggested Democrats may find room to work with President Donald Trump in his final two years.
“I’m not worried about Miller. Do I think we can work with Trump? Maybe,” the Vermont independent said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Trump named Miller to the post on Friday, replacing Susie Wiles, who resigned after Republicans’ losses in Tuesday’s midterm elections. Trump called Miller “one of my most trusted advisors” in a post on Truth Social.
Miller, a longtime Trump aide, has been the main architect of the administration’s immigration crackdown and deportation program. He takes over on Monday.
Sanders, 85, spent most of the interview on what Democrats could push for now that they control Congress, including a $20-an-hour minimum wage and health care for all.
He gave Trump an unusual mix of criticism and credit. “I personally believe he is mentally unbalanced, erratic, but he’s not stupid, and he’s a good politician,” Sanders said.
He said Trump “might not be unsympathetic” to raising the minimum wage to a living wage once he sees how many Americans work for low pay.
On health care, Sanders said Trump “would love, I think, to take credit for doing what every other major country does, guaranteeing health care to all people.”
Sanders has been a sharp critic of Miller in the past. He once said Congress should give “not another penny” to Immigration and Customs Enforcement until Miller and Kristi Noem, then the homeland security secretary, were gone.
Trump has said he could work with Democrats on immigration but would veto bills he does not like. The new Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3.