Stephen Miller delivered a venomous speech at right-wing activist Charlie Kirk's memorial service that bore a close resemblance to one given by a notorious Nazi leader at a similar event, according to reports.
The White House deputy chief of staff and top adviser to President Donald Trump called on mourners to honor the slain 31-year-old by channeling their grief into action against their political enemies, using language that mirrored a 1932 speech given by Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels invoking the memory of 22-year-old paramilitary activist whose murder turned him into a fascist martyr.
“The day that Charlie died, the angels wept, but those tears had been turned into fire in our hearts, and that fire burns with a righteous fury that our enemies cannot comprehend or understand," Miller said, paying tribute to Kirk's widow Erika. "But I see Erika and her strength and her courage."
“I am reminded of a famous expression," the White House adviser said. "The storm whispers to the warrior that you cannot withstand my strength and the warrior whispers back: ‘I am the storm.’ Erika is the storm. We are the storm, and our enemies cannot comprehend our strength, our determination, our resolve, our passion.”
Numerous social media users pointed out how closely Miller's themes and word choices resembled the speech Goebbels used to elevate Horst Wessel, a young member of the Sturmabteilung – or Storm Troopers – who was killed in 1930 by members of the Communist Party of Germany. His political martyrdom inspired the Nazi Party's official anthem, which later became the country's co-official anthem.
"Stephen Miller’s speech at Charlie Kirk’s memorial was essentially plagiarized," posted podcaster Jim Stewartson, who went on to list several examples. "See if you can spot the similarities."
"'“So our dead comrade Horst Wessel wrote, and we are fulfilling his prophesy,' Goebbels said, according to Stewartson's post. "The others may lie, slander, and pour their scorn on us — their political days are numbered. They promised you, workers, citizens and creative Germans, a Reich of freedom and beauty and dignity. People, rise up, and storm, break loose!'"
"This accurate, near-verbatim translation of key passages from Joseph Goebbels' speech titled 'The Storm is Coming' (original German: 'Der Sturm bricht los'), delivered on July 9, 1932, in Berlin," agreed attorney Tracey Gallagher, commenting on Stewartson's post. "This was a campaign rally speech in the lead-up to the July 31, 1932, Reichstag elections, where the Nazi Party (NSDAP) achieved its peak pre-1933 electoral success."
"Goebbels, then the Nazi Gauleiter of Berlin," she added, "used the speech to rally supporters by invoking the martyrdom of Horst Wessel — a young Nazi stormtrooper killed in 1930, later mythologized in Nazi propaganda as the author of their anthem, the 'Horst-Wessel-Lied.' Wake up America."
"Funny, I thought the same and checked it out," noted economist Anders Åslund. "Stephen Miller is Goebbels."
"This is 100% Goebbels," argued educator Jürgen Nauditt. "Terms like 'forces of evil,' 'the good,' and 'the virtuous,' as well as the notion of an 'inflamed army,' reflect a dualistic worldview that pits good against evil — a stylistic device often used in totalitarian ideologies to mobilize emotions and demonize opponents."
"It's like they made a clone of Goebbels but somehow the volume got stuck on 'screeching banshee,'" commented historian Kevin Kruse.
"Stephen Miller at Charlie Kirk’s 'memorial' is scary as all hell," added popular Bluesky account Lee-in-Iowa. "'You have no idea the dragon you've awakened to save civilization. You have nothing. We will defend virtue. We are on the side of goodness, of God.'"
"Beyond grotesque," said Justin Brannan, chair of finance at New York City Council. "Miller is a megalomaniac unmoored Christian Nationalist whose rage belies any notion of grief. He turned a funeral into a rally for Trump's war on ‘the left.’ Even Kirk’s foes are treating his death with more reverence than this!"
"Is this the most Nazi-like speech that has come directly from a US President's inner circle?" asked Reddit user carrtmann, who posted text of Miller's speech. "He manages to call 70+million Americans the enemy. Talk about lineage that built the world, and how we're not part of that lineage. Good vs evil. They're on the side of God. The lineage stuff is crazy!"
"Stephen Miller unironically seems to be an actual neo-Nazi," commented Reddit user Lallis. "This is literal Nazi rhetoric."