Industries reliant on immigrant labour slam Stephen Miller’s promotion

Farm and construction leaders are lashing out at Stephen Miller’s promotion to White House chief of staff, blaming his deportation push for labour shortages and Republican midterm losses.

Industries that rely heavily on immigrant labour have decried President Donald Trump’s promotion of Stephen Miller, the architect of his deportation drive, to chief of staff, the Washington Post reports.

Leaders of agriculture and construction groups reacted on Friday, days after Republicans lost heavily in the midterms. Chris Herr, president of PennAg Industries Association, said his first thought was: “Thank goodness he was let go.” Mario Guerrero, a three-time Trump supporter who heads the South Texas Builders Association, said, “The reason the GOP lost across the board [on Tuesday] is because of the enforcement that Stephen Miller was pushing.”

Last month, more than 40 farmers and agricultural groups wrote to Trump and congressional leaders warning that the immigration crackdown was hitting the food supply. About 66 percent of US farmworkers are foreign-born.

White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis said Miller “has been a key player in delivering on President Trump’s America First agenda since day one.” Industry leaders said they hope a Democratic Congress will open the way to bipartisan immigration legislation.