Matt Miller is the radical centrist on KCRW's weekly Left, Right and Center.
Miller's first book, The Two Percent Solution: Fixing America's Problems In Ways Liberals and Conservatives Can Love (PublicAffairs, 2003) was a Los Angeles Times bestseller. In its cover review, the Washington Post's Sunday Book World called Two Percent "a welcome return to political thinking on a big canvas agenda;" the Wall Street Journal called it a "small marvel of a book." His most recent book, The Tyranny Of Dead Ideas: Revolutionary Thinking for a New Age of Prosperity (2009) was called "downright prescient" (Time) and "fascinating" (Washington Post). Miller's commentary has been featured on The Colbert Report, Real Time with Bill Maher, and many other public affairs programs, and he has been a contributor and guest host on MSNBC. Miller was previously a columnist for the Washington Post and Fortune. In his business life, Miller is an executive at an investment firm.
Miller served as a Senior Advisor in the White House Office of Management and Budget from 1993 to 1995. From 1991 to 1992 he was a White House Fellow, serving as Special Assistant to the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.
Miller was born in New York City and raised in Rye Town, New York, and Greenwich, Connecticut. He received a BA in economics from Brown University, and a law degree from Columbia Law School.
Miller is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Screen Actors Guild (thanks to a cameo appearance in the thriller, The Siege.) He serves on the board of directors of the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools, and was appointed by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to serve on The Equity and Excellence Commission, which examined inequities in US school finance. His wife, Jody Miller, is the founder and CEO of The Business Talent Group. They live with their teenage daughter in Los Angeles.
Matt Miller on KCRW
More from KCRW
LA’s religious groups empower immigrants amid deportations
ImmigrationReligious institutions have long been a refuge for immigrants. Now, they’re mobilizing in response to recent actions from the Trump administration.
Trump tests limits of presidential powers with contentious first week
PoliticsAre Trump and Biden setting a dangerous precedent through their use of pardons? Will Congress retake its power to check the White House?
Trump muddies disaster responses with theories of his own
PoliticsDonald Trump bashed DEI policies in response to a tragic plane crash. He’s bucked heads with LA’s mayor over the wildfires. Is now the time to focus on policy?
Immigrant kids to get stronger protections in OC
Orange CountyAmid the Trump administration’s ramped-up efforts to deport undocumented immigrants, the Orange County Board of Supervisors voted to strengthen protections for children whose parents…
Can we make sense of Trump and Musk’s political approaches?
PoliticsKCRW unravels a disruptive White House week. Is the president just stirring outrage? Plus, we discuss Elon Musk’s influence on the foreign aid fight.
Will Trump’s ABC lawsuit put pressure on the media?
PoliticsShould media outlets be concerned about free press under Trump? What were the biggest stories of the year? Plus, the panel answers questions from listeners.
San Clemente rejects proposal to ban feeding unhoused people
Orange CountyThe San Clemente City Council voted down a ban on giving food to strangers in public, including unhoused people.
Why does 2025 feel a lot like 1981?
PoliticsWill the Senate defer to Trump on Cabinet nominees? Why does the transition to Trump’s second term feel familiar? KCRW looks at what’s ahead for 2025.
1 in 4 LA fast food workers were paid below minimum wage in 2024. Why?
Food & DrinkFast food workers lose about 16% of their pay every year, a new Northwestern University study found.