White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller speaks, while joined by U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, during a visit to greet members of the National Guard, at Union Station in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 20, 2025. REUTERS/Al Drago/Pool
President Donald Trump's deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, was on hand with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Wednesday when the group visited a Washington, D.C. Shake Shack.
A crowd of protesters and travelers shouted up at the second floor of the Union Station balcony as National Guard soldiers surrounded them.
"All these demonstrators that you've seen out here in recent days, all these elderly white hippies, they're not part of the city and never have been," Miller, who is from California, told the press. "We're gonna ignore these stupid white hippies that all need to go home and take a nap because they're all over 90 years old."
Photos and videos of the protesters appeared to show they were significantly younger, though Miller's comment sparked mockery, given that he works for one of the oldest presidents in history.
The 79-year-old Trump remained at the White House during the outing.
"Narrator: Miller is the acolyte of an elderly man suffering from dementia," quipped lawyer David Lurie.
"He sounds so dumb. Why does the demographic of the protesters matter? He’s mad because it’s not enough 'Blacks' out there. White people live in DC. How is he so damn stupid!?" said Philadelphia lawyer and analyst Zaquelle LaBelle.
"Stephen Miller is upset because 'elderly white hippies' are showing too much energy opposing his fascism. Uncool, man," mocked former Chicago Tribune metro editor Mark Jacob wrote on BlueSky.
"This just in: Stephen Miller thinks he's a hepcat," joked former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann.
"On top of everything else, is Stephen Miller wearing A TAN SUIT?" noted investigative reporter Sarah Posner. It harkens back to a fake scandal around former President Barack Obama, who wore a tan suit on Aug. 28, 2014, resulting in a massive uproar by Fox News hosts and conservative media.
"Stephen Miller was a loser in college, and now we all must pay for it. --sincerely, someone who remembers him from school," wrote law professor Anthony Michael Kreis, who cited the comments from a fellow Miller grad.
New Republic staff writer Greg Sargent cited recent polls showing that 79% of Washington, D.C. residents oppose the Trump takeover. That includes 80% of Black residents and 67% of Hispanic Washingtonians.
"I take comfort in the idea that, for the rest of his miserable life, he'll wonder how much phlegm and/or feces has been added to his restaurant meals," cracked host Bob Cesca.
"Pee Wee German hates the elderly," mocked The Lincoln Project.
"I'm confused, elderly white people need to go home and take a nap... but a 79-year-old white man should have an illegal third term," one BlueSky user replied to a video of the comments.