A former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official has revealed that he was the anonymous turncoat behind a New York Times op-ed and a subsequent book, both of which criticized President Trump‘s character. The White House response to this revelation has been hilarious, dismissing the turncoat as a waste of time.
Miles Taylor, a low-level staffer at the DHS, wrote the article and book, claiming to be one of many “senior officials” within the Trump administration actively working against the president. According to the Daily Wire, Taylor is now “a CNN contributor and a Google employee currently on leave until after the presidential election.” Most people are not shocked that a Trump administration turncoat now works for one of the most left-wing news outlets and a left-wing tech giant.
Anonymous No More
The anonymous turncoat became a sort of sensation in Washington following the publication of the op-ed, where the author was identified only as a ‘senior administration official in the Trump administration.’ In the op-ed, Taylor described coordinated efforts from staff to “thwart” the president, and complained about Trump’s “amorality.”
According to The Hill, “The White House pledged to look into the person’s identity to attempt to root them out while top administration officials distanced themselves from the opinion piece. The anonymous individual faded back into obscurity until late last year, when they published a book titled ‘A Warning.'”
“I witnessed Trump’s inability to do his job over the course of two-and-a-half years. Everyone saw it, though most were hesitant to speak up for fear of reprisals,” Taylor, who left the administration last year, wrote in a post in Medium.
“So when I left the Administration I wrote A Warning, a character study of the current Commander in Chief and a caution to voters that it wasn’t as bad as it looked inside the Trump Administration — it was worse,” the turncoat added.
Not a Republican
Taylor has been publicly criticizing the president for months, even going so far as to endorse Joe Biden for president. He served in the DHS from 2017-2019, where his highest position was a chief of staff for a short time to former DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen.
During Taylor’s short time in the administration, one of the main complaints was that the Department of Homeland Security oversaw the zero tolerance policy at the Mexican border, which separated thousands of illegal immigrant children from the people who brought them here. Though many on the left say “separated from their parents,” the reason for this policy was twofold: first, children aren’t always brought here by their parents, sometimes they are brought here by traffickers or criminals trying to pose as a family; second, it is a crime to cross the border illegally, and children should not be held in detention with adults. Nevertheless, this practice prompted outcry from both sides of the aisle, and was eventually halted.
Taylor’s continued criticism of Trump has been focused on his character, policies, and supposed bad treatment of the country’s institutions, and he continues to urge other Republicans to join him in his attacks on the president.
Taylor is what political commentator Michael Knowles would call a “squishy Republican”:
“The role of squishy Republicans in the liberal framework is to be losers. That’s their job, and the liberals actually need them. If the liberals didn’t have Republicans rolling over and pretending to put up a fight, but then rolling over, they would have a crisis of legitimacy… You see plenty of loser Republicans like this, Mitt Romney is kind of the classic example of this. He goes out, he puts up a little bit of a fight, and then ultimately he wants liberalism to succeed and to advance… There have been a lot of Republicans like that for way, way, way too long… And then you got Trump… He’s actually putting up the fight, and I think that’s why they’re pushing back on him so hard,” Knowles says.
Knowles is right. Look at Taylor’s recent statement: “Although former Vice President Joe Biden is likely to pursue progressive reforms that conservatives oppose (and rest assured, we will challenge them in the loyal opposition), his policy agenda cannot equal the damage done by the current President to the fabric of our Republic.”
Why Anonymous?
Many questioned why the turncoat chose to write anonymously while many government officials had gone on record to testify against President Trump during the impeachment hearing. Many asked if it was due to cowardice.
“Much has been made of the fact that these writings were published anonymously. The decision wasn’t easy, I wrestled with it, and I understand why some people consider it questionable to levy such serious charges against a sitting President under the cover of anonymity,” Taylor wrote Wednesday.
“But my reasoning was straightforward, and I stand by it. Issuing my critiques without attribution forced the President to answer them directly on their merits or not at all, rather than creating distractions through petty insults and name-calling. I wanted the attention to be on the arguments themselves,” he continued.
White House and Media Response
Many White House officials and conservative media figures mocked Taylor’s admission, dismissing his “importance” in the administration and accusing him of wanting publicity. Many within the White House and media were also critical of the actions of the New York Times in publishing the turncoat story.
“This low-level, disgruntled former staffer is a liar and a coward who chose anonymity over action and leaking over leading,” White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said in a statement, saying that it was “appalling a low-ranking official would be granted anonymity and it is clear the New York Times is doing the bidding of Never-Trumpers and Democrats.”
“He was ineffective and incompetent during his time as DHS Chief of Staff which is why he was promptly fired after only serving in this role for a matter of weeks. It is appalling a low-ranking official would be granted anonymity and it is clear the New York Times is doing the bidding of Never-Trumpers and Democrats. The American people elected President Trump to carry out his vision for the country, not an arrogant deep state operative trying to put their agenda ahead of the President’s America First policies,” the statement continued.
“Rising” host Saagar Enjeti commented: “Miles Taylor is* the first author in history to BENEFIT from being anonymous when writing a book If anyone knew who he was they wouldn’t have given a shit.”
Miles Taylor is* the first author in history to BENEFIT from being anonymous when writing a book
If anyone knew who he was they wouldn't have given a shit
— Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) October 28, 2020
“I rolled my eyes so hard I nearly tipped backwards. To paraphrase Andy Warhol: In the future, everyone will be a Senior Admin Officials for 15 minutes,” White House Communications Director Alyssa Farah tweeted.
I rolled my eyes so hard I nearly tipped backwards.🙄🙄
To paraphrase Andy Warhol: In the future, everyone will be a Senior Admin Officials for 15 minutes. 😂✌️ https://t.co/2quOGWkaHg
— Alyssa Farah (@Alyssafarah) October 28, 2020
“Miles Taylor wasn’t even DHS chief yet. He was a deputy advisor. A chief of staff *to* the chief of staff… for a cabinet secretary,” tweeted Ben Williamson, a top aide to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
Correct Miles Taylor wasn’t even DHS chief yet. He was a deputy advisor. A chief of staff *to* the chief of staff… for a cabinet secretary. The Times handed Dwight Schrute their editorial platform so he could write an op-ed pretending he’s the man behind the curtain. Comical. https://t.co/3jfE9Kfvba
— Ben Williamson (@_WilliamsonBen) October 28, 2020
Others pointed out that Taylor may have been coming forward for the publicity:
When you care so much about "duty to your country" that you wait until after securing a CNN contributer role and a book deal before coming forward with your identity. https://t.co/yQv2z6KSF3
— Michele Perez Exner (@michelepexner) October 28, 2020
Even members of the left wing media were critical of the New York Times turncoat op-ed. CNN National Security and Legal Analyst Susan Hennessey said: “Leaving aside how one feels about Taylor’s actions, I’m not sure that the NY Times decision to grant a DHS chief of staff anonymity for that op-ed and to describe him as a ‘senior administration official’ holds up especially well.”
The mere fact that the majority of people clearly came away with the perception that the author was dramatically more senior that he was in reality means that the Times failed to provide its readership sufficient context.
— Susan Hennessey (@Susan_Hennessey) October 28, 2020
“The mere fact that the majority of people clearly came away with the perception that the author was dramatically more senior that he was in reality means that the Times failed to provide its readership sufficient context,” Hennessey continued.
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