PBS Washington Week with The Atlantic - Full Show Washington Week with The Atlantic full episode, 2/13/26
12 snips
Feb 14, 2026 
Zolan Kanno-Youngs, NYT White House correspondent; Ashley Parker, Atlantic staff writer; Leigh Ann Caldwell, Puck chief Washington correspondent; and McKay Coppins, Atlantic staff writer. They trace Stephen Miller's rise from Capitol Hill to the White House. Short scenes cover his early years, performative rhetoric versus conviction, alliances with Sessions, his reach across policy areas, and how he aims to reshape national identity.
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Provocation As Political Strategy
- Miller treats provocation as a political tool, sometimes blurring performance and genuine belief.
- He believes "constructive controversy" can enlighten and shift public discourse.
Caricature Becomes Character
- Ashley Parker says Miller's intensity and dogmatism are consistent behind closed doors and on camera.
- That consistency makes his far-right immigration stance reliably influential inside the administration.
From Bachmann To Sessions To Power
- Leigh Ann Caldwell traces Miller's Hill career from Michelle Bachmann to Jeff Sessions where he honed anti-immigration tactics.
- He was once dismissed as an outlier, but later became the most powerful non-elected official on these issues.