Trump aide wanted to use drone strikes on unarmed civilians: new book

Stephen Miller, a top immigration advisor in the Trump administration, suggested using drone strikes to attack unarmed civilians, another administration official claims in an upcoming book, Rolling Stone reports.

Miles Taylor, a Homeland Security appointee in the Trump administration, in a passage from “Blowback” reviewed by the news outlet, claims that Miller in a 2018 conversation pushed for attacking a U.S.-bound migrant ship.

Rolling Stone’s Asawin Suebsaeng writes that Taylor’s book claims Miller “argued for the potential mass killing of civilians by suggesting they were not protected under the U.S. Constitution because they were in international waters.”

Taylor, who served as DHS’ chief of staff in the Trump administration, authored an anonymous New York Times op-ed published on Oct. 28 2020 under the headline “I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration.” He acknowledged authoring the piece after resigning from the Trump administration in June 2019.

Rolling Stone obtained written documentation that it says backs Taylor’s assertion about Miller calling for the drone strikes on migrants.

Taylor in his book claims Miller made the disturbing suggestion during a meeting with Paul Zukunft, a since-retired admiral who served as U.S. Coast Guard commander.

Miller and another person who was present for the conversation dispute Taylor’s characterization of Miller’s statements, according to the report.

“I vividly recall having a lengthy conversation with Stephen Miller regarding Southwest border security in 2018,” says Zukunft. “My point was that the U.S. is not exerting enough influence in the form of foreign aid in the tri-border region of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador that have been key source nations for illegal migration. In effect, get at the root cause of illegal migration at the source rather than a goal line defense at the border. And the preponderance of these migrants traverse on foot. But to use deadly force to thwart maritime migration would be preposterous and the antithesis of our Nation’s vanguard for advancing human rights.”

Taylor is sticking with his story, telling Rolling Stone: “The conversation happened.”

He offers a detailed account of the conversation, in which Miller asks Zukunft to confirm that the military is in possession of drones capable of carrying missles.

Miller at one point asks Zukunft “when a boat full of migrants is in international waters, they aren’t protected by the U.S. Constitution, right?”

After Zukunft replies "Technically, no, but I’m not sure what you’re getting at."

Miller asks: “Tell me why, then, can’t we use a Predator drone to obliterate that boat?”

Zukunft responds: "Because, Stephen, it would be against international law.”

Suebsaeng writes that “Taylor is not the first Trump administration veteran to speak out in recent years about Miller and his alleged proposals for violence.”

“Trump’s former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper wrote in his memoir last year that, in October 2019, Miller once ‘proposed securing [ISIS leader] Mr. al-Baghdadi’s head, dipping it in pig’s blood and parading it around to warn other terrorists,’ according to The New York Times. Miller denied that this occurred, telling the Times that Esper was ‘a moron.’”

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