Miles Taylor, a former DHS official during Donald Trump’s first administration, said the disagreement over honoring Sen. John McCain made him decide to leave government. In an interview, he described Trump’s behavior as “an act of active dishonor.”
Taylor made these comments in response to Trump’s public reaction to the death of former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who died at the age of 81 after suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
After Mueller’s death, Trump posted on social media, celebrating his death, “Good. I’m glad he’s dead,” which drew widespread criticism, and Taylor remarked that this response was “so unsurprising.”
In an interview featured on Tuesday, Taylor said Trump’s reaction to Mueller’s death followed a pattern he witnessed directly while at DHS. He recalled an incident from August 2018, when McCain died and flags were lowered in his honor. Taylor explained that he was awakened during an official trip to Australia and informed that Trump was upset about the flags being lowered for McCain and demanded they be raised again.
Taylor: The day that I decided to quit that administration was the day when a mentor of mine from capitol hill had died. His name was John McCain. The flags were at half staff around the country, and the president was trying to call us in Australia on the other side of the world,… pic.twitter.com/Me6REBYn1p
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 24, 2026
“For the President of the United States to be so petty, to tell us to raise the flags back up in an act of active dishonor, tells you everything you need to know about that man and his lack of integrity and character,” Taylor said.
Taylor has previously stated that the McCain incident was a turning point for him. In a 2020 interview with The Washington Post, he said he felt “sick to my stomach” when the White House pressured DHS to reverse the tribute.
Taylor mentioned that he and other officials refused to do so unless they received a written order, and that aides, including then-White House chief of staff John Kelly, eventually convinced the president to issue a proclamation keeping the flags at half-staff until McCain’s burial. That same night, he began writing the anonymous New York Times opinion piece that later gained national attention.
Hegseth: Typical Trump. All bluster, very low substance… he’s an armchair tough guy. This is a guy who said that John McCain is not a war hero yet he sought his own five military deferments pic.twitter.com/qVjsy8eiJr
— Acyn (@Acyn) December 4, 2024
Reuters reported at the time that the White House flag was lowered after McCain’s death, then raised again, before Trump later ordered the flags to return to half-staff following public backlash. McCain, a Vietnam War prisoner and longtime senator from Arizona, died on August 25, 2018, at 81.
Taylor held senior positions at DHS during Trump’s first term and later revealed he was the anonymous author of a 2018 Times op-ed criticizing the administration from within. Reuters reported in 2025 that Taylor was a top DHS official during Trump’s first term and that Trump later had his security clearance revoked and the Justice Department investigate him.
Mueller led the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election after serving as FBI director from 2001 to 2013. He did not indict Trump. His death led to tributes from former officials across both parties due to his service in goverment and war hero status,regardless of political differences.
