California Governor Gavin Newsom called Monday for the firing of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, tying the demand directly to a fatal shooting by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Biddeford, Maine, earlier that day. The post, published on the @CAgovernor account at 9:16 p.m. on July 13, 2026, marks the latest and most direct escalation in a monthslong campaign by Newsom against Miller, widely regarded as the architect of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement strategy.
The Post
Newsom’s statement was blunt and posted without qualification. “Trump’s ICE agents have brought fear and terror to our communities,” the post read. “How many people must die for Congress to finally exercise oversight, accountability and fully reform? Stephen Miller must be fired! Today is as good a day as any.”
What Prompted the Post
The statement came hours after a federal immigration officer fatally shot a man in Biddeford, a city of roughly 22,500 people southwest of Portland, Maine. Authorities did not immediately identify the man who was killed, though an advocacy group said he was a 26-year-old Colombian national. The Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition and the group Presente! later identified the victim as Joan Sebastian Guerrero, a 26-year-old man from Colombia. The two organizations said in a joint statement that Guerrero was authorized to work in the United States and had been issued a Social Security number.
Details of the encounter remained disputed throughout the day. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said he was briefed on the incident by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who told him ICE agents attempted to stop a vehicle Guerrero was driving before the shooting occurred. King said Mullin described Guerrero as having “weaponized” the vehicle before an ICE agent opened fire. However, Mullin also told King that the man killed was not the target of the arrest warrant agents were carrying out that morning. King added that the agents involved were not wearing body cameras, leaving no video record of what occurred. The office of Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey opened an investigation into the shooting.
Local officials reacted swiftly. Maine Gov. Janet Mills called the revelation that Guerrero was authorized to work “even more disturbing and infuriating,” saying it “underscores the reckless and haphazard manner in which immigration enforcement operations are being conducted in Maine and across the country,” adding, “This has to end.” Biddeford Mayor Liam LaFountain said he was “mourning for the individuals impacted, for the family that lost a father, lost a partner, and a community member.” Hundreds of people gathered that evening for a vigil at Mechanics Park in Biddeford, less than 12 hours after the shooting.
A Pattern Newsom Has Tracked for Months
Monday’s shooting was not an isolated event. It came less than a week after a migrant was fatally shot by ICE in Houston. In that case, ICE said 52-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Araujo attempted to ram an agent’s vehicle and ignored verbal commands before an officer opened fire on July 7. That account was later disputed. Three men who were riding in the vehicle with Salgado Araujo contested the Department of Homeland Security’s version of events, and video of the aftermath showed Salgado Araujo lying on a sidewalk, moaning and calling for help. The Houston shooting was described as the first deadly shooting involving federal immigration officers since two U.S. citizens, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, were killed in Minneapolis in January.
Newsom referenced that earlier chapter of violence directly on X in the aftermath of the Minneapolis shootings, writing that “everyone involved with this reign of terror — including Kristi Noem and Stephen Miller — needs to be fired immediately.”
Newsom’s Extended Campaign Against Miller
Monday’s post is only the most recent entry in a pattern of public pressure Newsom’s office has applied to Miller since earlier in the year. In late March, Newsom’s press office posted “START THE COUNTDOWN !!! Stephen Miller is going to be fired!” in response to reporting alleging Miller was exercising outsized control over the Department of Homeland Security, at times overriding President Trump’s own stated positions. In February, Newsom’s office also cited an online poll, posting “THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN! MORE THAN 30,000 PEOPLE SAY STEPHEN MILLER SHOULD BE FIRED FIRST!”
Reporting on Miller’s Role Inside DHS
The March reporting Newsom cited described Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff and homeland security adviser, as wielding significant influence over immigration enforcement decisions, at times superseding direction from Trump himself. One official described a call in which Miller instructed staff to disregard a directive from the president, saying, “We’re discussing that internally,” and that “it was like the President never said anything. It was just like Stephen was in charge.” The same reporting noted that Miller has reportedly been so demanding toward DHS and ICE officials that his conduct has been linked to health problems among staff, including allegations that ICE Director Todd Lyons was hospitalized twice for stress-related issues.
Bipartisan and Congressional Pressure
Newsom is not alone in calling for Miller’s removal. Following the demotion of then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem earlier this year, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told CNN’s Jake Tapper that he wanted Miller to leave Trump’s inner circle as well. Tillis had separately described Miller as a “big problem” who “should go.” On the Democratic side, Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., has repeatedly called for Miller’s firing, stating in January that “Stephen Miller is the architect of some of the worst and most dangerous of the Trump administration’s policies,” and asking, “When will enough be enough? He should be fired.” Luján also called Miller and Noem “out of control” and demanded a full and independent investigation into the Minneapolis shootings, along with their resignation or firing.
Noem’s Departure and Mullin’s Rise
The pressure campaign against DHS leadership has already produced one significant change. Noem’s exit from the department marked the first major Cabinet-level dismissal of Trump’s second term. Homeland Security is now led by Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who briefed Sen. King directly following Monday’s shooting in Biddeford. Miller, however, has remained in his post throughout the leadership change, continuing to direct immigration policy from inside the White House even as calls from both parties for his removal have grown louder.
Advocacy Groups Demand Independent Investigation
Immigrant rights organizations in Maine echoed elements of Newsom’s demand for accountability following Monday’s shooting. The Maine Immigrants’ Rights Coalition and Presente! called for a “prompt, independent, and transparent investigation,” along with a full accounting of every agency and officer involved and the preservation of all body-camera footage, surveillance footage, and communications between federal officials. The groups stated that “ICE must not be allowed to investigate itself or control the public narrative surrounding a death in which its personnel or operations were involved.”
What Comes Next
As of Monday night, no response to Newsom’s post had been issued by the White House, DHS, or Miller himself. The Maine Attorney General’s investigation into the Biddeford shooting remains active, and Sen. King has said no body camera footage exists of the encounter that left Guerrero dead. With three fatal shootings involving federal immigration agents in under six months — Minneapolis in January, Houston on July 7, and now Biddeford on July 13 — Newsom’s demand that Congress “finally exercise oversight, accountability and fully reform” places renewed pressure on lawmakers in both parties to address the deputy chief of staff’s role at the center of the administration’s enforcement strategy.