White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller criticized California Governor Gavin Newsom and Joe Biden during a Fox News interview Friday, citing their policies as contributing factors in a fatal multi-vehicle crash that left three people dead.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) confirmed that Jashanpreet Singh, a 21-year-old Indian national living illegally in the United States, retained and even upgraded his commercial driver’s license (CDL) days before the deadly collision.
Singh is accused of causing the crash while allegedly under the influence of drugs.
In an appearance on “The Will Cain Show,” Miller pointed to California’s decision to grant commercial driving privileges to noncitizens as a key policy failure.
“Gavin Newsom in his state has a policy to give commercial driver’s licenses to individuals who do not know how to speak English and do not know how to drive,” Miller said.
“Those are policy choices that Gov. Newsom and his state have made. So it’s one Democrat policy choice after another.”
Miller also criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s border and immigration decisions, arguing they directly enabled Singh to remain in the country.
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“This is a Democrat-caused calamity, heartbreaking calamity,” Miller told host Will Cain.
“The first crime against Americans was the Biden administration’s decision to voluntarily free and release from custody an illegal alien within hours of crossing the southern border.”
He described the period under the previous administration as one where strict enforcement helped prevent such incidents.
“Let’s go back to the unending nightmare that we lived through for four years under Biden, where single adult men in groups, in caravans, or traveling alone would show up at the border, present themselves, announce, ‘I’m here illegally. I’ve invaded your country. I demand entry,’” Miller said.
Miller said Singh entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was released shortly after by the Biden-Harris administration.
He added that the reversal of Trump-era immigration policies contributed to the tragedy.
“And Biden would order the border patrol at taxpayer expense to ferry them on to the destination of their choice, in this case, California − that happened in 2022. The Biden administration did one other thing. Donald Trump issued a regulation barring work permits for illegal aliens. Biden reversed that regulation, mandated work permits for illegal aliens, issued him [Singh] a work permit,” Miller said.
Police in Ontario, California, arrested Singh following the crash, which authorities said involved multiple vehicles and resulted in three fatalities.
The California Highway Patrol is leading the ongoing investigation into the collision.
Homeland Security officials confirmed Singh’s illegal entry into the United States in 2022 and his subsequent release under Biden-era border guidelines.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the state of California allowed Singh to obtain his commercial driving license under existing state law.
🚨 WATCH: WH Press Sec. Karoline Leavitt tells Daily Caller’s @reaganreese_ that the illegal alien accused of killing three people in a DUI crash was granted a commercial driver’s license by California. pic.twitter.com/nsTwLipeQj
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) October 23, 2025
A Department of Transportation report released on September 26 found that more than 25 percent of commercial licenses issued to non-domiciled drivers in California were processed improperly.
Federal officials said the California Department of Motor Vehicles ignored federal directives to revoke licenses held by individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the incident could have been prevented had the state complied with the administration’s updated safety measures.
“The deadly crash in Ontario should never have happened,” Duffy said in a statement.
“California defied direct orders to revoke commercial licenses from undocumented drivers, and now three innocent lives have been lost.”
Authorities said Singh remains in custody at the San Bernardino County Jail on multiple felony counts, including gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence causing injury.
His next court appearance is scheduled for later this month.
Miller concluded that the tragedy reflects broader failures in border and state policy enforcement.
“This is what happens when leaders put politics above the rule of law,” he said.
Jaw dropping.
CA Governor Newsom gave 62,000 CDL commercial driver licenses to illegals.
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) October 23, 2025
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