Stephen Miller Confronted By Reporter Over Venezuelan Crime

Screenshot via X.

Stephen Millerwho served as an advisor to the former president Donald Trumps The White House stood in for the Republican candidate at this week’s ABC News debate and had a controversial interview with reporter José Maria Del Pino.

Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris gathered in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening for a debate moderated by ABC News David Muir And Linsey DavisThe ex-president unleashed a series of unsubstantiated and untrue claims and tirades, including the allegation that migrants who eat pets are terrorizing an Ohio town and that Democrats support post-birth abortion and are responsible for the attempted assassination. He also claimed that President Joe Biden “hate[s]” Harris and “can’t stand her,” backtracked on his admission that he lost the 2020 election and was widely criticized during the debate, even from the right.

Miller was one of Trump’s surrogates in the post-debate spin room and was questioned by Del Pino about the former president’s claim that crime in Venezuela is lower than in the United States.

Things didn’t go well.

As the video clip Del Pino posted begins, Miller talks about how, if Trump is re-elected, “all these criminal migrants that have flooded the country will be the first ones thrown out of here,” on “day one.” He went on to list “horrific crimes” committed by Venezuelan gang members.

“Crime in Venezuela has dropped by about 60 percent in recent years,” Miller said.

“Do you trust the official figures of the Venezuelan dictatorship?” Del Pino asked, referring to the Nicolas Maduro regime.

Miller responded, “If you were a dictator of a poor country with a high crime rate, wouldn’t you… You “Are you sending criminals to our open border?”

“That wasn’t my question,” Del Pino said. “Do you trust the dictatorship’s numbers? Those are Maduro numbers.”

“I believe it is in the interest of a criminal dictator to let his criminals out of prison and come to our country,” Miller said.

Del Pino asked him again if he had “real figures” and not the dictator’s figures.

Miller began referring to some sort of CCTV footage that allegedly showed a number of crimes committed by Venezuelan gangs, and Del Pino interrupted him by saying that his family was from Venezuela: “I know very well the situation in Caracas and many other cities.”

Miller kept talking about the video footage of gangs in an apartment complex and Del Pino tried again. “But I asked you for numbers, figures, facts.”

“The facts are the bodies,” Miller said.

Del Pino asked him again about his claim that crime in the US was higher than in Venezuela. “I asked you about Caracas and the numbers in Caracas — do you trust the numbers from the dictatorship?”

Miller began to scream, gesturing with his hand for emphasis. “I trust Kamala Harris to let illegal immigrants into this country who rape and murder children!”

“Why are you shouting?” Del Pino replied, pointing out that he had been very respectful.

Miller then asked Del Pino if he knew who the various individuals were. He mentioned names of crime victims that Trump and his supporters often invoke in the immigration debate.

“Do you know how many people in Caracas are affected by violence?” Del Pino insisted.

Trump’s deputy continued his tirade and Del Pino asked, “Why are you yelling again?”

“I’m screaming because children are being raped and murdered!” Miller shouted.

“I only ask for numbers and you have not answered me about those numbers,” Del Pino said. “Do you trust Nicolás Maduro’s numbers?”

Miller kept yelling about gangs.

“Do you trust Nicolás Maduro?” Del Pino repeated.

“I trust he doesn’t want his criminals to—” Miller began, still shouting.

“So you believe his numbers?” Del Pino interrupted.

This back-and-forth continued for some time, with Del Pino repeatedly asking what numbers Miller was using and whether he trusted the dictatorship’s claims.

“Children are dead and you’re wasting my time!” Miller shouted, pointing at Del Pino.

“No, I am not wasting your time,” Del Pino insisted. “I am asking for facts, as a journalist.”

“Children are being raped! Do you have any remorse for the dead children?!” Miller screamed. “Do you even care about the dead children?!”

“Absolutely,” said Del Pino.

Miller went on a rant about Trump’s immigration plans to deport “the gangs of immigrants” and Del Pino tried to ask for the numbers again.

“So you don’t have any numbers?” he asked as Miller ignored him and continued to rant.

“You didn’t answer my question,” Del Pino said as Miller turned to walk away.

Del Pino posted several other tweets with additional information, citing statistics from the Venezuelan Violence Observatory — “not the Madura government,” he noted — showing that “the murder rate in Venezuela is more than 4x the US rate.”

“It is true that Venezuela’s murder rate has gone down,” he wrote. “But it is false that it is safer than the United States.”

He added a “little disclaimer” that he was Chilean but had Venezuelan relatives. “That’s why a substantial part of my family lives in Venezuela. Their pain and uncertainty in the face of dictatorship and insecurity is also my pain.”

Watch the video above.

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