Speechwriter and White House Senior Policy Adviser Stephen Miller was interviewed on CNN’s State of the Union today, but it ended in contentious fashion as the host Jake Tapper accused Miller of "wasting our viewers time" and then abruptly cutting to commercial. Miller was on to address the controversial book Fire and Fury as well as statements made by former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon, AKA “Sloppy Steve.”
“There is one viewer that you care about, right now. You are being obsequious right now, and you are being a factotum to please him, okay? And I think I have wasted enough of our viewer’s time,” the long time host told Miller. Tapper was referring to Miller's boss, President Donald J. Trump.
But Miller continued to interrupt Tapper saying, “No, do you know who I care about,” before his mic was cut and Tapper moved to commercials.
This exchange occurred face to face, making the drama all the more fascinating to watch.
Jake Tapper to Stephen Miller: “I think I’ve wasted enough of my viewer’s time.” pic.twitter.com/0lEm5Xelk3
— Yashar Ali ?? (@yashar) January 7, 2018
Per the book Fire and Fury written by Michael Wolff, which has salacious claims against the president including attacks on his mental state and asserting that Trump did not actually want to win the presidency, Miler said, “The book is best understood as a work of poorly written fiction. And I will also say that the author is a garbage author of a garbage book.”
Adding, “And the tragic thing about this book, and there are many things about it that are unfortunate, but the portrayal of the president in the book is so contrary to reality, to the experience of those who work with him, to my own experience having spent the last two years with him.”
Trump Senior Policy Adviser Stephen Miller on Wolff book: "The book is best understood as a work of very poorly written fiction...The author is a garbage author of a garbage book" #CNNSOTU https://t.co/Uh8YHTxyYV https://t.co/8zEk9Myt8y
— CNN (@CNN) January 7, 2018
As for Steve Bannon, Miller said that his role was “greatly exaggerated” within the White House and that “It’s tragic and unfortunate that Steve would make these grotesque comments so out of touch with reality and obviously so vindictive.”
Miller, a Duke graduate, had previously battled CNN's Jim Acosta over President Trump's immigration policy. That exchange occurred in the White House briefing room, where Miller accused Acosta of having "cosmopolitan bias" for wrongly believing that Donald Trump's proposed immigration ban would prevent non-english speakers from coming to the United States.
President Donald J. Trump tweeted his approval moments ago, saying Stephen Miller "destroyed" the "Fake News CNN."
Jake Tapper of Fake News CNN just got destroyed in his interview with Stephen Miller of the Trump Administration. Watch the hatred and unfairness of this CNN flunky!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 7, 2018
This post will be updated.