Sarah McCammon

Stephen Miller isn't an elected official, but there are few people with more power in America today.

Here's President Trump speaking to reporters at the White House last October.

As the White House deputy chief of staff for policy and one of President Trump's longest-serving aides, Miller's been the driving force behind many of Trump's core policies —

He's known for having extreme views, even by the president's own standards.

Miller is the architect of Trump's anti-immigrant crackdown.

He's pushed for a narrowing of legal immigration pathways and led the push in ICE recruitment and deployment.

And he's been in the spotlight recently as a driving force behind the plan to capture Venezuela's leader, Nicolas Maduro.

In a much-circulated interview this week with CNN, Miller said we live in a world, quote, governed by strength and force, and also asserted that Greenland should be part of the United States.

Consider this.

Stephen Miller is largely credited with channeling President Trump's desires and making his vision of America real.

What motivates Stephen Miller?

From NPR, I'm Sarah McCammon.

It's Consider This from NPR.

Stephen Miller is a polarizing character, and we know that President Trump trusts him.

So how far-reaching is his role in our government?

That's Ashley Parker, a staff writer for The Atlantic.

Her new article is called The Wrath of Stephen Miller.

I spoke to her earlier, and I started by asking her just how powerful Stephen Miller is in the administration.

LESLIE KENDRICK You spoke with several folks within the administration about Miller's style, and you describe him as, quote, the pulsing human id of a president who is already almost pure id.

LESLIE KENDRICK