Tim Miller (Washington, D.C.)

Tim Miller
Basic facts
Organization:	The Bulwark
Role:	Writer-at-large
Location:	Washington, D.C.
Expertise:	Communications & messaging
Education:	The George Washington University (2004, B.A., political science)
Prior Experience • Bill Lee 2004 gubernatorial • Jerry Kilgore 2005 gubernatorial • Bill Dix 2006 congressional • Jeff Lamberti 2006 congressional • John McCain 2008 presidential • Berman and Co. comm. strategist • Glover Park Group dir. of digital comm. • Jon Huntsman 2012 presidential • RNC deputy comm dir. • America Rising executive dir. • Jeb Bush 2016 presidential Communications director

Tim Miller is a political commentator and former Republican campaign staffer. As of September 2025, Miller was writer-at-large at The Bulwark and hosted the group's The Next Level podcast. Miller was active in Republican campaign politics until 2016 and has since "been recognized as one of the leading 'Never Trump Republicans,'" according to the University of Southern California.

Biography

Miller graduated from George Washington University with a degree in political science and journalism. His early political career included work on U.S. House elections in Iowa, the gubernatorial campaigns of Scott Walker (R) in Wisconsin and Nikki Haley (R) in South Carolina, and the 2008 presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain (R.). In the 2012 election cycle, Miller worked as national press secretary for the Jon Huntsman (R) presidential campaign and later for the Mitt Romney (R) presidential campaign. After the election, Miller was a founding executive at America Rising, a Republican opposition research firm.

In the 2016 election cycle, Miller was communications director for the Jeb Bush (R) presidential campaign. After Bush suspended his campaign, Miller joined Republican Voters Against Trump as its political director. After the 2016 election, Miller shifted careers from political strategist to political commentator, joining The Bulwark and writing for publications including The New York Times and Rolling Stone. As of September 2025, Miller was the host of The Next Level podcast on The Bulwark and a political analyst with MSNBC.

Work and activities

Early career

After graduating from George Washington University in 2004, Miller's political career began as a travel aide on Bill Lee's (R) gubernatorial campaign in Delaware that same year. He held this position for less than a year before moving on to become a field director for Jerry Kilgore's (R) 2005 Virginia gubernatorial campaign. Miller then became the political director on Bill Dix's (R) 2006 U.S. House campaign (R). During 2006, he also briefly served as communications director for Jeff Lamberti's (R) congressional campaign in Iowa. In describing his early career, Miller called himself a "campaign gypsy."

Miller remained in the state to serve as the Iowa communications director for John McCain's (R) 2008 presidential bid. Miller resigned his position in July 2007, but he did not comment further on his reasons for leaving the campaign. Miller's resignation came a day after a number of top aides left the campaign, including campaign manager Terry Nelson, chief strategist John Weaver, and strategist Danny Diaz.

Private sector communications

Then, from 2007 through 2009, he worked as a communications strategist at Berman and Company, a "research, communications, advertising, and government affairs firm" based in Washington, D.C. While with Berman, Miller worked as a spokesperson for the Employment Policies Institute, which Pro Publica described in 2008: "The nonprofit Employment Policies Institute styles itself as a research organization, but recent IRS filings show a combined $1.4 million in payments from the nonprofit to Berman and Company, Berman’s lobbying firm, in 2005 and 2006." Miller also worked on communications for other Berman-affiliated nonprofit groups the Employee Freedom Action Committee, the Center for Union Facts, and the Center for Consumer Freedom.

From 2009 through 2011, Miller worked as the director and lead digital communications strategist for the Glover Park Group, a "strategic communications and government affairs firm." The Glover Park Group was founded in 2001 by former staffers for Bill Clinton (D) and Al Gore (D). According to The Holmes Report, "Glover Park has succeeded ... in part by being more than just another public affairs firm: its capabilities include advocacy and image advertising, crisis and issues management, legislative affairs, and (critically) research."

Presidential election, 2012

Jon Huntsman presidential campaign
He returned to campaign work in June 2011, signing on as press secretary for Jon Huntsman's (R) 2012 presidential campaign. In February 2011, he joined a PAC supporting Huntsman, Horizon PAC; he became the campaign spokesperson after Huntsman announced his candidacy in June 2011. He described his role in the campaign as press secretary: "As a press secretary, you have to be quick on your feet. ... It is important to have the discipline to stay on message, not take the bait from reporters who want to focus on other topics, and clearly communicate a message. If you are hesitant in figuring out how to respond to reporters, you are losing valuable time."

Republican National Committee
From Huntsman's campaign, Miller went on to serve as the deputy communications director at the Republican National Committee (RNC). According to National Journal, Miller was hired to "play a major role in messaging and planning." During his time with the RNC, he worked as liaison with Romney for President on regional communications and rapid response. After Romney lost the election to President Barack Obama (D), Miller was part of a team, called the Growth and Opportunity Project, that diagnosed the campaign for potential areas of change for future campaign. In a 2016 interview, Miller explained that the project was an attempt to broaden the party's base of support:

“

We've got major issues, and here's the thing. You know, one of the hot takes right now is that, you know, the Republican establishment, of which I guess I'm part, having worked for a Bush and the RNC at this point, you know, didn't see what was happening with the base and we misread our own party. We saw what was--we knew what was happening. We were just trying to hold the party together and offer the American people an agenda that did not repulse everyone who is not white.

”

America Rising

In March 2013, he co-founded the super PAC America Rising, a "GOP opposition-research group that relentlessly spattered Democratic Senate candidates" during the 2014 election cycle, according to Politico. The Wall Street Journal described the group's founding and development in 2015: "After the 2012 campaign revealed the GOP to be lagging behind the Democratic Party on opposition research, Mr. Miller helped build America Rising into an $8 million, brand-name outfit that worked closely with Republican Party committees and other conservative groups."

Definers Public Affairs

In September 2016, Miller joined Definers Public Affairs, a communications firm founded by Mitt Romney's (R) 2012 campaign manager Matt Rhoades and former RNC research director Joe Pounder. According to Politico, the firm brings "political campaign type research and communication tactics" to corporate consulting in Washington, D.C. Miller said that his role was to work "more aggressively ... directly after threats to our clients."

Presidential election, 2016

Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016

See also: Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016

After exploring the possibility of a presidential run for several months, Bush officially announced his candidacy on June 15, 2015, at Miami Dade College. He largely focused on economic issues and said he would "take Washington – the static capital of this dynamic country – out of the business of causing problems." Bush, who served as governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007, is the son of former President George H.W. Bush and the brother of former President George W. Bush. He is the first brother of a president to run for the office since the Kennedy family, Robert in 1968 and Ted in 1980.

At the time of Miller's hire, Politico noted, "Miller is an aggressive, younger operative who can be expected to inject a pugilistic style into Bush’s high command. [...] Miller, a former Republican National Committee deputy communications director, is one of the party’s most active operatives on Twitter, and is among the most digitally fluent and social-media savvy."

Bush ended his run for the White House after faring poorly in the Iowa Caucuses as well as primary elections in New Hampshire and South Carolina. At a gathering of supporters in the Palmetto State on February 20, 2016, he said:

“

The people of Iowa and New Hampshire and South Carolina have spoken, and I really respect their decision, so tonight I am suspending my campaign.

”

Our Principles PAC

See also: Our Principles PAC

Established on January 14, 2016, Our Principles PAC was created by Katie Packer as an anti-Donald Trump super PAC. Packer was Mitt Romney's deputy campaign manager in 2012. In March 2016, Miller was hired by Our Principles as the super PAC's communications director. Miller described his role thusly: "I’m working to ensure that Donald Trump is not the nominee. I made an effort for Jeb to be the nominee, and my focus is now on ensuring it’s not Donald Trump."

As communications director, Miller has appeared on a number of news shows representing the PAC. In a March 17, 2016, appearance on MSNBC, Miller said a Trump nomination would virtually guarantee a win for Hillary Clinton in a general election. Miller specifically used the term Trump used to describe Hillary's loss to then-Sen. Barack Obama in 2008, saying, "I was listening to the Robby Mook interview that you did right before this. Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager? I mean, that guy has got to be giddy. If Donald Trump wins the nomination, he can come down here to Miami and work on his tan. To use a Trumpian term, Hillary is going to schlong him in the general election."

In an April 2016 interview with Politico, Miller further commented on Trump's chances at winning a general election in the event that investigations into Hillary Clinton would lead to an indictment. Miller responded, "Hillary would beat him from jail."

Comments on Republican National Convention

See also: Republican National Convention, 2016

In July 2016, Miller told The Wall Street Journal that he would not attend that year's Republican National Convention. The paper reported that he had reserved a hotel room based on the possibility that the NeverTrump movement would unbind delegates at the convention. Miller went on to say, "I strongly dislike Hillary Clinton. That said, it’s not even a close call. Donald Trump is a threat to our democratic system."

Notable endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.

Affiliations

As of September 2025, Miller was the writer-at-large at The Bulwark and the host of the organization's The Next Level podcast. He was an MSNBC contributor, has written for The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and Playboy. Miller was a frequent guest on the Pod Save America podcast.

See also

• What is an influencer?
• Our Principles PAC
• America Rising
• Jeb Bush presidential campaign, 2016

External links

• Tim Miller on Instagram
• Tim Miller on Twitter