Depending upon which SE Liz is talking about, she may not be particularly interested in the current SE. The original 2016 SE was released alongside the larger 6S iPhones; that SE sported the comparatively miniscule form factor of the earlier 5-series iPhones, but with the same CPU as the 6S. The two subsequent SEs (2020 and 2022) both moved on to the larger 6-series form factor, but each with slightly more modernized internals. It seems to me that the most reasonable supposition is that Apple decided that you just can't get a decent enough battery life out of the newer-gen hardware within the physical constraints of a 5-series chassis. Likewise, they appear to be coming to the same conclusion about the latest Minis.
It has been my observation that most people who pine for smaller iPhones are thinking nostalgically of their old 4-series or 5-series models, when we were all more innocent... and when the primarily function of most peoples' phones was still just to (shudder!) make phone calls.
Times have changed.